Wednesday's NFL: Rodgers says decision on future will come 'soon enough'
Green Bay, Wis. — Aaron Rodgers says he will make a decision on his future “soon enough” as the four-time MVP quarterback ponders whether to play next season and if his future remains with the Green Bay Packers.
Rodgers, 39, discussed his future while speaking on an episode of the “Aubrey Marcus Podcast” that was released Wednesday morning. He spent much of the 1 1/2-hour conversation describing his recent isolation retreat in which he said he spent four days alone in a dark room.
“There’s a finality to the decision,” Rodgers said. “I don’t make it lightly. I don’t want to drag anybody around.”
The podcast was released one day after Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst was asked about Rodgers and said that they “haven’t had the conversations that we need to have yet.” Gutekunst indicated he hoped a decision was made by the start of free agency on March 15.
"There’s been some contact back and forth,” Gutekunst said. “Obviously he’s had some things on his plate. Hopefully those things will happen soon.”
Gutekunst also indicated that he believes 2020 first-round pick Jordan Love is ready to be an NFL starting quarterback. Love has backed up Rodgers the past three seasons.
Rodgers, who is due to make about $59.5 million if he plays, noted that “for everyone involved, directly and indirectly it's best for a decision earlier.”
He referenced the latter stages of Brett Favre’s career in Green Bay, when the Packers didn’t know whether the Hall of Fame quarterback would play or retire. Rodgers backed up Favre for the first three seasons of his career.
Favre did retire in the spring of 2008 before changing his mind, leading the Packers to trade him to the New York Jets because they already had announced Rodgers as their starter.
“Look, I’m answering questions about it because I get asked about it,” Rodgers said. “I’m talking about it because it’s important to me. If you don’t like it and think it’s drama, me being a diva or whatever, just tune it out. That’s fine. But this is my life. It’s important to me. I’ll make a decision soon enough and we’ll go down that road and be really excited about it.”
Rodgers has noted he planned this retreat several months ago and that it wasn’t planned specifically so that he could think about his football future. Rodgers said he wanted a chance to “disconnect from technology and from the world" and give himself “the gift of rest.”
But the solitude did give him plenty of opportunities to consider the possibilities.
Rodgers said he would have plenty of incentive if he does come back after a 2022 season in which he had his lowest passer rating as a starter after the Packers went 8-9 and missed the playoffs.
He compared it to the situation he faced heading into 2020, which marked the Packers’ second year under coach Matt LaFleur and the season after the team drafted Love. Rodgers earned MVP honors in 2020 and 2021.
“I’ve been doubted before,” Rodgers said. “Honestly I felt in the first year that Matt was here, Matt was in Green Bay in ’19 and I felt at times like a game manager, like I didn’t quite understand what we were doing at times on offense. My job was to take care of the football and I did. I threw four interceptions and 26 touchdowns, and we were 13-3, but I felt like there was so much more. Then they drafted my replacement and I won MVP twice, and I threw 85 touchdowns and nine interceptions in two years.
“Obviously there were some changes that happened on the team and the coaching staff and I didn’t have my best year playing (last season) and there are probably people who think I’m done. They thought I was done before I became COVID MVP twice. So there would be plenty of inspiration down that road.”
Ravens GM still hopes to sign Jackson without franchise tag
Indianapolis — Baltimore general manager Eric DeCosta said Wednesday the Ravens have not decided which type of franchise tag they would use on quarterback Lamar Jackson if the team can't sign him to a long-term contract before the start of free agency.
Jackson has played to the end of his rookie deal, and the deadline for teams to apply the franchise tag is Tuesday. Baltimore could use the non-exclusive tag, which carries a salary of $32,416,000 for next season, but then Jackson could negotiate with other teams, and if he received an offer the Ravens didn't match, they could lose him for two first-round draft picks.
The exclusive franchise tag would prevent another team from signing the star quarterback, but the cost could be a good bit higher.
“There are a couple different franchise tags,” DeCosta said at the NFL scouting combine. "We’re hopeful that we’ll get a deal done with Lamar before that happens, but sure. They’re big numbers. We’ve known they’re big numbers, we’re prepared for that, and we have four, five or six different plans based on what happens over the next 10 days.”
DeCosta said he and Jackson met recently, and the team still wants the 2019 NFL MVP in Baltimore. He also said the team prepares for every contingency.
“It’s not like we didn’t know we might be in this position,” he said. "Last year at this time, we talked about it, so we’ve had a full year to really discuss all the different plans. We’ll make the right decision.”
If negotiations between Jackson and the Ravens remain fruitless, a trade could become a realistic option. Baltimore would presumably receive quite a haul for its star quarterback, including multiple high draft picks.
DeCosta was asked if he'd be scouting quarterbacks in this year's draft class.
“I was trained as a scout; I started out as a scout. That’s kind of what my development was,” he said. “So, I scout everybody anyways. ... I’m going to look at all the top players, I’m going to do the top 150 players in every single draft class, and I’ve done that. I look at the top guys in free agency. I enjoy it, and so for me, that’s not something that changes year to year.”
Coach John Harbaugh said he hasn't thought much about going forward without Jackson. The Ravens recently hired Todd Monken of Georgia as their new offensive coordinator.
NFL coach Brian Flores' discrimination case going to court
New York — NFL Coach Brian Flores can press discrimination claims against the league and three teams after a federal judge on Wednesday rejected the option of arbitration, presumably before Commissioner Roger Goodell, and offered some stinging observations about the status of racial bias in the sport.
The written decision by Judge Valerie Caproni in Manhattan clearing the way for Flores to bring his claims to trial also required two other coaches who joined the lawsuit to submit to arbitration. The league had tried to move the Flores claims to arbitration, citing contracts that coaches had signed.
Flores sued the league and three teams a year ago, saying the league was “rife with racism,” particularly in its hiring and promotion of Black coaches.
Caproni wrote that the descriptions by the coaches of their experiences of racial discrimination in a league with a “long history of systematic discrimination toward Black players, coaches, and managers — are incredibly troubling.”
The judge said it was “difficult to understand” how there was only one Black head coach at the time Flores filed his lawsuit in a league of 32 teams with Black players making up about 70% of the rosters.
The judge said Flores can let a jury decide the merits of his discrimination claims against the league, the Denver Broncos, the New York Giants and the Houston Texans, but he must pursue his claims against the Miami Dolphins through arbitration.
“We are pleased that Coach Flores’ class claims of systematic discrimination against the NFL and several teams will proceed in court and ultimately before a jury of his peers,” attorney Douglas Wigdor said in an email.
He added: “We are disappointed the court compelled arbitration of any claims before Mr. Goodell as he is obviously biased and unqualified to rule on these matters. We expect him to delegate those matters to a truly neutral arbitrator as a matter of fundamental fairness.”
NFL spokesperson Brian McCarthy said the league was pleased with Caproni's ruling, which “correctly holds that the vast majority of claims in this case are properly arbitrable by the Commissioner under binding agreements signed by each plaintiff.”
He said the NFL planned "to move forward promptly with arbitrations as directed by the Court and to seek to dismiss the remaining claims.”
He added: “Diversity and inclusion throughout the NFL make us a better organization. We recognize there is more work to be done and we are deeply committed to doing it.”
Flores brought the lawsuit after he was fired by Miami, where he led the Dolphins to a 24-25 record over three years.
According to the lawsuit, Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross told Flores he would pay him $100,000 for every loss during the coach’s first season because he wanted the club to “tank” so it could get the draft’s top pick.
The lawsuit alleged that Ross then pressured Flores to recruit a prominent quarterback in violation of the league’s tampering rules. When Flores refused, he was cast as the “angry Black man” who is difficult to work with and was derided until he was fired, the suit said.
The Dolphins responded to the lawsuit when it was filed by saying it vehemently denied any allegations of racial discrimination and was “proud of the diversity and inclusion throughout our organization.”
Lawyers for the teams did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday.
When he brought the lawsuit, Flores said he knew he was risking his coaching career that he loves, but he hoped to bring positive change for generations to come by challenging systemic racism in the league.
The judge noted that Flores was announced as the new defense coordinator for the Minnesota Vikings earlier this month.