(Audacy Sports/WGR 550) - As Aaron Rodgers goes off the grid in his darkness retreat, the NFL world awaits anxiously on what his next move may be, particularly the New York Jets.
While the Jets engaged in talks with Derek Carr this week, the possibility of landing Rodgers remains out there, and WFAN’s Boomer Esiason believes it could realistically happen.
Esiason said on Tuesday’s “Boomer and Gio” that he spoke with multiple people around the NFL over the weekend and came away believing that Rodgers is “basically driving the bus.”
“He is in total control of what he wants to do,” Esiason said. “And Green Bay knows this. Green Bay also knows they can’t afford a $58 million signing bonus. If he goes back to Green Bay, he has to readjust his contract again.”
Boomer then outlined what must happen for Rodgers to become a member of the Jets.
“No. 1, he has to come out from his darkness retreat and he has to demand a trade to the Jets only,” Esiason said. “If he does that, Green Bay will acquiesce and they will trade him to the Jets. And Green Bay is not going to receive all the compensation everyone thinks.
“Rodgers has to do what [Tom] Brady did in Tampa — he’s gotta adjust his contract to the point where it’s amenable for the Jets to pay it and also have a sitdown with Woody Johnson and say, ‘Look, if I’m taking less money you have to assure me you’re going to be spending money in other spots quickly and in free agency.’”
Esiason added that signing Rodgers for two years would not necessarily mean Zach Wilson’s tenure with the Jets is over, either.
“It turns out, I believe, that Aaron Rodgers is Zach Wilson's idol,” Esiason said. “You get the best of both worlds from Jets perspective. You get to hold onto Zach Wilson. He gets to go to those meeting rooms with Aaron Rodgers and they seem to like each other a lot.”
LISTEN on the Audacy App
Sign Up and Follow Audacy Sports
Facebook | Twitter | Instagram