Aaron Rodgers Tried to Recruit Calvin Johnson to Green Bay
Calvin Johnson in Green Bay Packers green and gold?
Obviously, it never happened, as the Lions legend and franchise leader in receptions (731), receiving yards (11,619) and receiving touchdowns (83) played his entire nine-year career in Detroit.
However, according to Johnson, if it would've been up to Packers franchise passer Aaron Rodgers, it would've happened.
In an appearance on the "All the Smoke'' podcast with former NBA players Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson, Johnson admitted that Rodgers, during games between the Lions and Packers, would often openly lobby for Johnson to join forces with him in Green Bay.
"Whenever we played Green Bay, whenever Aaron Rodgers was over on our sideline, he would say, 'Hey man, you need to come on over here,'" Johnson told Barnes and Jackson. "I said, 'Hey, I wish I could.'"
Johnson, affectionately known as "Megatron" to Lions fans and NFL fans all across the land, called it quits in 2015, after being selected to his sixth consecutive Pro Bowl and amassing 88 catches for 1,214 yards and nine touchdowns.
All of the individual accolades, including being a three-time All-Pro and member of the NFL's 2010s All-Decade Team, weren't good enough for Johnson, though.
JULIAN H. GONZALEZ, Detroit Free Press
He played on just two winning teams, and never recorded a single playoff victory during his time in Motown.
The losing grew on him as time went on, and eventually became too much for him to bear.
"It was unfortunate," Johnson said. "You can't help but have the feeling like we obviously didn't maximize the talent that we had. And all anybody can do is point at themselves and say, 'What could I have done better?' I could have had maybe 2,000 yards or 1,500 yards one year, and that could have helped. Or maybe there was a ball that I could have, should have, caught.
"Just the simple fact that we didn't maximize the talent. You got me on offense, you've got [Matt] Stafford, you got Ndamukong Suh on defense. You've got some beasts all around the team in key positions, that you should be able to have a winning team. We just didn't have the winning culture, though. There's a lot more that goes into it than having those key players."
If he would've had the chance to play for a contender, he revealed to Barnes and Jackson that he could've seen himself potentially playing past 2015.
At the time, he had a deal with the Lions that would've seen him donning the Honolulu Blue through the 2019 campaign.
So, he would've had to have been traded to a contending team, making it very unlikely he would've ended up in Green Bay.
But, could you have imagined Rodgers throwing touchdown passes to Johnson at Lambeau Field?
It would've been a thing of beauty ... unless you're a Lions fan.
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