affect the on-field product in 2022. The future of Aaron.
See Rogers. I used to say Aaron J. Just because I assume
everyone's middle initial is Jay. Just for fun. I think it's
Aaron Charles Rogers. We've been down this path before.
What will he be doing
in 2022? He's promised an answer by the start of free
agency. We're getting closer and closer, just 15 days away.
There was a report last night for me, and Rapport of NFL
media, but the Packers and Rogers agents are working on
a short-term.
Term contract, that would replace the final year
of his current deal.
Assuming he plans to stay.
I think this is a good sign.
I think the mere fact that both sides, see the benefit
of working out a contract before Aaron says, what he's
going to do, would tend to be an indication. He's leaning in
the direction
of staying, or at a minimum Peter. He recognizes the value
of doing that. While his decision is pending you give up
your leverage if you say, okay, I'm staying, let's work out
a new contract. If your, if your attitude is, maybe I'll stay.
I don't know. Let's see what the contract looks like.
You're probably going to get a better contract.
And here's the other thing, you know, I saw that last night and
honestly kudos to Ian because that's the first time I really
have thought
that
you know, there's a leaning one way or the other.
I think that Rogers, you know, I'll never forget Rogers was
like August 8th or 10th last year, sat with him
on a bench on the side of the practice field.
Don Hudson field across from Lambeau.
And he told me, he said you're not going to hear any clues for
me, this year. I'm, you know,
I'm going to be where my feet are, blah, blah, blah, blah,
blah, all that stuff.
And I think he did a very good job of it. But I do think now,
if this is the case and if he does,
if he doesn't short-term contract to stay,
let's say the next two years
to me what that says to me.
Is Davante Adams. Listen
you and I have got to stay together for the next two years.
That's that's it.
We have the most golden opportunity,
you know, don't go into free agency to some unknown place.
You know, let's just stay here and take two more shots at
winning a Super Bowl, and look
the last three years
championship game against San Francisco
championship game.
In stampa, divisional game against San Francisco
have been some of the lowest points of Aaron Rodgers NFL
career.
So I think he also feels. Hey, listen, I've got to come back
and redeem myself. If indeed, he does this.
That he's got to come back and play Big at Big moments,
but I think the only way that that is insured.
Third, honestly is if Davante Adams stays with him.
And
Peter, I think about the last two off Seasons, Tom, Brady and
2020, leaving the patriots who were in many decline. I really
don't know where they are right now, after getting blown off
the field, in the wild-card game against the bills,
but they were on the way down
when Brady left. He hand-picked a destination. That was Super
Bowl, ready? Just add high-end quarterback and he wins
the Super Bowl. Last year. Matthew Stafford? Flees the latest
attempt to reboot. The dysfunction in Detroit goes to
Play Super Bowl ready? Team team that got to the Super Bowl
with Jared Goff at quarterback. He comes in. They win a Super
Bowl. I think the struggle for Aaron Rodgers
is a very real one. Where else can you go? Where you have
an opportunity
to fairly easily get the one seat in the NFC North? Right.
Now, the Bears in the Vikings both have new coach, new GM,
the lions are in year two
of their latest reboot.
You can run that division. You can win enough games in that
division at all. The difference between being the 1 seed,
the to see 23. See the 4C. Yes. So why would you want to go
anywhere else?
There's no team in the AFC that you can point to and say, hey
they're in position to really kick ass and take names this
year, because the rest of the AFC is so damn competitive, his
best place
to get back in the same position. He's been the last three years
in the playoffs at a high level 1 seed, the last two years, as
you mentioned, three years ago. And if C Championship is to
stay exactly where he is
and he's probably coming to that realization.
Here's the other thing, Mike,
you know, you don't often get into a situation
where,
you know, they got nine of their games are at home this
year. Even the one of them is in London. I cannot imagine
that that game in London is not going to be a dominant
cheesehead crowd.
I mean, the Packers have never played in Europe. Ever played
a real game in Europe. So every fan from Denmark,
To, you know, the south of France is going to converge on
Tottenham stadium
in October and go nuts for the Packers.
You know, I was talking to somebody,
you know, who's from England who now lives. Here. He goes,
you know, mostly
we don't scalp tickets to games
because we just don't, if we can't see a game will stay at
home, and we'll watch the game on TV, but he said that, That
is a game where if you're a Green Bay fan, you have to go
to that game and you
will go to that game. Somehow by hook or by crook. See, this
is a really cool thing. I did that. Hey, Mike. I don't know,
six or eight years ago. I was visiting. I have family over in
England and my brother and I my late brother.
Now, we walked across Abbey Road. We got a picture of
ourselves doing it. Just like every other
Terrorist is ever done when they visit that area of London.
But
look, this is a but you're absolutely right. It's a golden
golden opportunity
for the Packers over the next two years
to again win home field and finally
fulfill that wish
of a second, Super Bowl for Aaron Rodgers.
Did you go shoes or no shoes?
When you crossed Abbey Road, I went shoes because Paul has no
shoes. Paul has no shoes. Barefoot, no
Barefoot. He cross-eyed buried pump and,
and, and
and, and they buried Rogers in that picture. They didn't put
him in the picture. So there are a lot of people yesterday,
trying to interpret the messages, the same as taking the old,
12-inch vinyl and spinning. It backward. What's the message?
Because Rogers? Neither neither Rogers. Nor Jordan love is in
that photo. I'll maybe they'll have no quarterback at all
in 2022. As they go to London. And you know what? That may be
a weird little Cosmic sign for Aaron Rodgers, to because he
said, he would like to play
a game in London. They were the last team. They are the last
team
to do it. So they get their wish this year. And, and, and
yeah, Packers, and we're giving up a game at Lambeau Field. You
still have eight
games. That's one of the benefits of the 17-game season.
That's the whole thing of seats might like,
If you look at the schedule, or if you look at
the announcement, the NFL made yesterday and I wrote this in
my column yesterday.
I wrote it like two weeks ago. That it was pretty sure that,
you know, Tampa Bay was going to be the host team
for the for the game in Germany, but
four of the five teams
playing an international game
this year, all but Jacksonville, which is
contractually obligated to play
at least one in And then every year but the other four teams
are all NFC teams.
And you know what in 2023,
all five teams will be AFC teams
because that's the way
that's sort of the Hidden, little secret
in the 17 game. Schedule.
Everybody is still always
going to have at least eight home games except for
the Jaguars, but they've been doing that for years now.
And ideally what will happen is. We'll see 16 neutral site
games every single year. So every team has
eight true home games because that's where the
slight imbalance is. You're going to have
multiple teams in the NFC. Well, 12 of the teams in
the NFC that have nine true home games for have eight, true.
Home games, the four teams that will be hosting
the international games. Cardinal Saints, Packers
bucks. The other 12 teams will all have nine home games next
year. Just like, most of the AFC had Nine home games
the year before and I look forward to the year where there are 16
International games. I think that's far more likely than
a team being relocated to London. But who knows?