Aaron Rodgers has reportedly told some of his current teammates he won't ever play in Green Bay again.
At least one former teammate, though, believes Rodgers will play for the Packers in 2021.
John Kuhn, a fullback in Green Bay from 2007-15 who went to three Pro Bowls, thinks Rodgers will be back.
“I have talked to Aaron Rodgers,” Kuhn said during an interview with Zach Gelb of CBS Sports Radio on Wednesday. “I won’t say exactly what we talked about. I will say he’s conflicted because this man loves to play the game of football. This man loves to be a Green Bay Packer and this man truly sees careers.
“He’s watched friends leave. He watched Brett Favre’s career towards the end. He’s watched all these things play out in front of his eyes. He’s taken notes throughout his entire career. He’s seen some situations that didn’t feel were done or finished the way that they could or should have. And he’s just trying to take his own destiny within his own hands.
“To that effect I actually admire him because not many players in the NFL have that opportunity. I sure as heck didn’t. I played until everybody told me you can’t play anymore and it’s a humbling feeling and Aaron Rodgers has an opportunity to try and take a little bit of that power back.”
Rodgers has been upset with the organization since it selected quarterback Jordan Love in the first round of the 2020 draft to eventually replace him. Five hours before the NFL Draft on April 29, word leaked that Rodgers didn't want to play for Green Bay ever again.
Rodgers’ camp let it be known the disgruntled quarterback wants general manager Brian Gutekunst fired. Pro Football Talk reported, “(Rodgers) doesn't like anyone in the front office for a variety of reasons.”
The Athletic reported that Rodgers referred to Gutekunst as “Jerry Krause” — the man who built and tore down the Chicago Bulls dynasty in the 1990s — in group chats with teammates. And Mike Garafolo of NFL Media reported that Rodgers was telling Green Bay’s prospective free agents “before you make any decisions, I’m probably not gonna be there.”
While Rodgers has thrown one shot after another at the Packers in recent weeks, Kuhn still thinks the Hall of Fame quarterback would return if some changes were made to his contract.
“Ultimately, at the end of the day, I truly believe Aaron wants to come back to Green Bay, but he doesn’t want to do it on a lame-duck contract,” said Kuhn, who hosts a sports radio show today on 97.3 The Fan in Milwaukee. “Even though there’s three years on his contract, if you really look at the terms of it, it pretty much sets up for a clean break at the end of the 2021 season for the Packers himself considering that Jordan Love is on a rookie salary.
“So I think that he wants more insurance that he’s going to be a long-term starting quarterback option for the Green Bay Packers and that I believe is something that would intrigue him to make amends with the team and come back to this season. He said multiple times on several different outlets that he plans to play into his 40s and he really wants to do it in Green Bay. I don’t see that feeling from him having changed, and I believe that’s still the main goal of him and sometimes it takes some drastic measures to get to the spots.”
