Kiz: Quarterback Aaron Rodgers has the Packers and Broncos right where he wants them. Begging. Shamelessly. For his services. Green Bay does the limbo, bending over backward to keep Rodgers happy. Maybe Nathaniel Hackett was the best man for the coaching job in Denver, but I think the main reason was his buddy-buddy relationship with Rodgers. As the climax to this football melodrama looms, the Broncos will not only have to offer a king’s ransom in draft picks to Green Bay, but also an outrageous salary to Rodgers, if they want him in Denver. Am I right?
O’Halloran: Two of the quarterbacks who have a higher average salary than Rodgers’ $33.5 million (according to Over The Cap) — Dak Prescott ($40 million) and Deshaun Watson ($39 million). Yes, Rodgers wants to add a second Super Bowl championship to his resume/legacy, but I do think a big element of this saga is becoming the NFL’s highest-paid player in general and quarterback in particular. The Broncos should start with this offer — a three-year, $150 million contract that is masked as a five-year deal to spread out the cap charges, thus allowing Rodgers to keep the core of offensive talent around him.
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Kiz: One … hundred … and … fifty … million … dollars? If I say it slowly enough, between deep breaths, maybe I won’t pass out from sticker shock. But you know what? As much as Rodgers likes Hackett, I’m betting the wily old quarterback loves money even more. If Patrick Mahomes banks an average of $45 million per year from the Chiefs, here’s betting Rodgers and his agent will have zero remorse pitting Green Bay against Denver in a bidding war to make him decide that throwing touchdown passes for a record-setting salary is a whole lot more fun (and profitable) than retiring to become the host of “Jeopardy!”
O’Halloran: This is big business and there is no time for feelings. Rodgers made that clear by planting the seed last April about possibly not returning to Green Bay and skipping all of his team’s off-season activities. He wasn’t happy with some of the Packers’ upper management decision-makers and wasn’t afraid to express that but without using any words. It would have been foolish for Paton to hire Hackett exclusively on the basis of helping him get Rodgers; the new big whistle has extensive experience working with young quarterbacks, which he will do at some point. But if Rodgers decides to steer himself toward the Broncos, he knows exactly the situation he’s walking into, which means the arrangement will be successful immediately.
Kiz: Without knowledge of every thought bouncing around Rodgers’ quirky mind, we’re all gazing through a cracked and murky crystal ball to guess if this soap opera will have a happy ending for Broncos Country. While there’s not a cynical bone in my body, part of me wonders if Rodgers might be leveraging the eagerness of Denver general manager George Paton to acquire an elite quarterback in order to squeeze every last mega-dollar out of Packers management before kissing, making up and returning to play quarterback in Green Bay.
O’Halloran: That scenario is quite possible as he or his camp gave signs last week that he is “torn” about where to play this year, using that as a passive/aggressive way of saying, “Not enough money, Green Bay.” From Paton’s perspective, he has played this pretty well so far, going about his team-building business all the while keeping the cap space he would need in case Rodgers chooses the Broncos and the Packers accept a trade offer. There should be no financial ceiling for the Broncos in this pursuit; the windfall of Rodgers winning here would make a monster contract worth it.
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