For the second straight offseason, there'll be several weeks of rumors and speculation about Aaron Rodgers' future in the NFL, and whether he'll play another game with the Green Bay Packers. The veteran quarterback hasn't revealed his 2022 plans yet, but Hall of Fame running back Barry Sanders expects that Rodgers will return to the Packers for an 18th season.
"If I had to guess, I would say he'd be back. I just can't see that many better situations somewhere else, honestly," Sanders told The Zach Gelb Show on Thursday. "But, who knows the math he's doing in his head. Obviously, last year was a very bizarre offseason for him and for a lot of fans. But, until I see him leave Green Bay, then I'm going to assume he'll be there for a while. And that the rest of it is just kind of drama."
Although the Packers' season ended with an ugly divisional-round loss to the San Francisco 49ers, Rodgers produced his fourth career MVP season. In 16 games, the 38-year-old threw for 4,115 yards with 37 touchdowns and just four picks, and didn't commit a single turnover from Week 10 on. Rodgers had also stepped up while battling a broken left pinky toe, suffered in mid-November.
Rodgers comes with a hefty cap hit of $46 million in 2022 -- due to contract restructuring -- and if he plays out the season, he'd then be eligible for free agency during the 2023 league year. If he chooses to retire this offseason, however, he'd miss out on nearly $27 million in 2022.
The entire football conversation between Sanders and Gelb can be accessed in the audio player above.
You can follow The Zach Gelb Show on Twitter @ZachGelb and Tom Hanslin @TomHanslin.