Watch: Rodgers Arrives at Jets Headquarters

What does Aaron Rodgers look like wearing some other team’s gear? The four-time MVP arrived in New York on Wednesday as a member of the Jets.

Author:
Bill Huber
Updated:
Apr 26, 2023 10:11 AM EDT
Original:
Apr 26, 2023

In this story:

Green Bay Packers

GREEN BAY, Wis. – Former Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers – an unfathomable sentence for most of the last 18 years – arrived in Florham Park, N.J., on Wednesday wearing a New York Jets hoodie.

Here’s what that looked like:

Once inside Jets HQ, he was greeted by, among others, former Packers offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett.

With Rodgers having passed his physical, bid farewell to Green Bay and agreed to an amended contract, he will be introduced as a member of the Jets on Wednesday afternoon. The trade will be made official in time for the Packers and Jets to make their picks in the 2023 NFL Draft.

As part of the trade, the teams swapped first-round picks and Green Bay added a second-round selection. That means the Packers are scheduled to pick 13th (from the Jets), 42nd (from the Jets) and 45th (their own pick).

"Obviously, we're comfortable with how this deal shaped," Jets general manager Joe Douglas told reporters on Tuesday. "I don't think anyone ever walks away from a negotiation where you feel like you won everything in terms of what's gone back and forth. But ultimately, our goal from the beginning was to add Aaron to the team, so we were able to get that. We agreed to terms yesterday and we're just excited to bring him here."

Rodgers leaves Green Bay as one of the greatest players in Packers and NFL history. He won four MVPs and one Super Bowl during an illustrious 15 seasons as the team’s starting quarterback.

“I know this: He’ll always be a Packer,” Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst said on Monday. “He’ll be one of the best who have ever done it around here. I have a lot of respect for how he went about it. He’ll be missed, there’s no doubt about it.”

While the Jets hope Rodgers is the missing piece to a team that won seven games despite a horrendous quarterbacking situation, the Packers will try to recover quickly with Jordan Love.

“Obviously, Aaron was going to enter a time in his career where he was going to be ending and we had to be prepared for the future get prepared to try to move forward,” Gutekunst said. “That’s part of the National Football League. Great players are going to come, they’re going to go, and you’ve got to be prepared to continue to add good football players to your roster so that your team can win.”