Aaron Rodgers Trade Grades: Big Win for Packers, Not So Much for Jets
Trade details: Packers send quarterback Aaron Rodgers, 2023 first- and fifth-round choices (Nos. 15 and 170) to Jets for a ’23 first-, second- and sixth-round picks (Nos. 13, 42 and 207) from the Jets. A conditional 2024 second-round pick becomes a first-round selection if Rodgers plays 65 percent of the plays.
Jets grade: C
Packers grade: A-minus
For the Jets, this was a necessary-but-costly move. New York started 7–4 last season before losing six consecutive games to close the season out, largely because its quarterbacks were Mike White, Zach Wilson and Joe Flacco.
Rodgers, 39, is a gamble, and New York is taking a player who might not play more than one season. The Jets will also be hoping Rodgers doesn’t enter into constant combat with the media and fans in New York. Additionally, Rodgers is coming off a down year in which he failed to throw for 300 yards in any game. He also tossed 12 interceptions, the most since his first year as a starter in Green Bay in 2008. There’s a chance the Jets are getting in at the wrong time.
Still, Jets GM Joe Douglas was compelled to take the risk.
Packers Central: Aaron Rodgers's legacy
New York is giving up significant assets, including at least one top-50 pick and likely another in 2024. Still, the roster is stocked with young talent such as Garrett Wilson and Sauce Gardner, and the Jets have no chance in the ultracompetitive AFC without a top-tier quarterback. Now, New York can realistically compete in '23.
For Douglas, Rodgers will be the pivot point of his Jets tenure—for better or worse.
The ultimate question regarding this trade for the Jets is how long Rodgers plays, and whether New York can make a Super Bowl run. If the Jets get multiple years and a few deep playoff pushes with Rodgers, the trade is a win.
After 31 seasons of Favre and Rodgers, Green Bay is moving into a new unknown.
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For the Packers, the trade represents a reset.
Yes, Green Bay is moving off major cap hits and clearing its books, but the Packers are trading away one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL.
General manager Brian Gutekunst should be excited to finally see what fourth-year quarterback Jordan Love could do as the starter, but there’s not much surrounding him on the roster. The Packers are using 2023 to absorb $40 million in dead cap resulting from the trade, while other veterans are eating up sizable portions of the remaining cap.
Ultimately, this is a new era for the Packers. After having 31 seasons of Brett Favre and Rodgers, Green Bay is moving into a new unknown. Gutekunst now has a year to evaluate Love before deciding whether he wants to look for another option or commit to the former 2020 first-round pick.
