Packers-Jets Trade Compensation (Hour 4)

The worst kept secret is out.

That's right. It is the Zach Gelb show on CBS Sports Radio. Aaron Rodgers today on the Pat McAfee show makes it clear that he is done with the Green Bay Packers. His time is up being the quarterback and playing inside the legendary Lambeau Field and he intends to play football next year for the Jets and now we'll have to wait and see how long it's going to take for the Packers and Jets to agree upon compensation to send Aaron Rodgers to the Big Apple. Now joining us is a man that we've talked to a bunch the last three years and the first two years of that he's remained optimistic that Aaron Rodgers was going to be staying in Green Bay and then this year prior to the start of the off season he said this year it feels different. That is someone that knows what he's talking about when it comes to the Packers and Aaron Rodgers and that his former Packers fall back in John Coon. John since now the cat is out of the bag that Aaron Rodgers intends to play for the Jets next year.

How do you react to that? Well first Zach let me please add that I would hope that because this Aaron Rodgers in Green Bay situation that's been so up and down in roller coaster like the last few years looks like it's coming to its final stop. I hope that means I'm no longer invited to join the Zach Gelb show because I always enjoy talking with you but as you talk about the Aaron Rodgers situation and the McAfee interview today the kind of clearing of grievances or airing of grievances by Aaron himself I can't say I was surprised by pretty much anything that was said throughout the interview. I was not surprised to hear the end result of this when we came to the end of the season. I can remember speaking with you shortly after the end of the regular season into the playoffs and I should say it feels different.

Zach I wasn't quite sure what I could put my finger on. Maybe it was the temperature of the team the way that they finished with an 8-9 record. Maybe it was the fact that the offense had sputtered at times throughout the season or maybe it was the fact that going into the season Devante Adams with the surprise trade request after Aaron Rodgers had already signed to come back as the Green Bay Packers quarterback with that extension this past year. All of those things kind of mixing together melting in the pot led me to believe that this was the first year out of the last three years since the Packers had drafted Jordan Love that I felt like there might be a change of the guard at the quarterback position. Obviously you had a feeling that it was heading down this road like you were talking about but whenever you found out were you sad that now it's over that you won't be seeing Rodgers play for the Packers in the fall. You know and being pretty good friends with Aaron spending nine years of my career as a teammate of his knowing what it's like the legacy of a Green Bay Packer especially a Green Bay Packer of the last 25-30 years great success tremendous franchise iconic kind of stature being a Green Bay Packer for the last 30 years I had always hoped and I know that it was on his to-do list to try and have a legacy differ from Brett Favre's not to separate himself from you know Brett and say I'm greater than but more along the lines of we all experienced 2008 together we know how messy it was and the hardest thing for a teammate in a locker room is to watch the pain of another teammate as he's pretty much shown his papers and as his walking papers and showing the door and we experienced that with Brett and you experience it with with your core players every single year every single year is 12 to 20 guys that that you love that are going on to either bigger better things to other teams or it's their last year and you'll never see a football field again and that's a hard pill to swallow as a teammate but it it comes around about once a career where you spend time with a player with a legacy that a Baron Rodgers Brett Favre to Charles Wood somebody with a gold jacket and they have an opportunity to spend their entire career with a team and when they don't get to do that and I know Aaron's done everything within his power to try and ensure that he could finish his career finish his legacy in Green Bay to see him not be able to achieve that goal was tough it is a tough one to swallow on the other hand I am still a I'm still a Packer guy they are still my squad they're the team that I chose to retire as when I left the NFL and I do recognize this as being a time of change as you look at the roster in Green Bay it's not the roster that they've had 2019, 2020, 2021 when they were going to NFC Championship games and divisional round playoff games as the number one seed it's a much different roster and if there was ever a time to make a break that could potentially be advantageous to both sides now is the time. Do you think the the franchise owed more to Rodgers at the end because he constantly is annoyed and I know it's never easy when you're moving on from a player no matter how great or if it was just time to move on or not those conversations the player of course is always going to be bitter because they think they can still play at this great level and they don't want to leave does Green Bay have a problem with the way that they say goodbye to guys that have been there for years? You know I think every player in the National Football League has a different experience and I think every player in the National Football League has a different mindset I was an undrafted player who had bounced around till I got to Green Bay and I'd spent nine years here and I was so thankful and grateful for the opportunity to play in Green Bay that even during the uncertain time of 2015 when I was going to be eventually a New Orleans Saint there was a long period of poor communication between us and the Green Bay Packers and trying to figure out if I was going to come back and play with them or not even during that time I hold no grudges I hold no ill will but I can understand how that would hurt people I can understand how emotionally that could that could be draining and for Aaron Rodgers it's been three years it's he lived this as the Jordan Love before he lived this watching it from the other side so now that you are on this side as Aaron it's almost like the day Jordan Love got drafted you flipped an hourglass of sand and you are reminded every single day when you go into work that more and more sand has dropped down in that hourglass and you know that time is just inevitable so is that that constant reminder cannot be an easy thing emotionally to be dealing with when you're a quarterback and a gold jacket player like Aaron Rodgers is. John Kuhn the frustrating part for me is that I felt like at the end of the season the Packers are ready to move on and Rodgers was fine with leaving Green Bay as well it feels like that was never communicated by both sides I thought the communication by both sides could have been a whole lot better.

Yeah and you know there's two sides to every story and sometimes within the professional football ranks you have a coach tell a player this is the way I want you to run a play and a player will go out there and he'll run that play to exactly what he thought the coach was telling him to run it till and it might even be a successful play and then that player will come into a meeting after the game on Monday and they'll watch the film and the player will have a minus on a play where he had a successful game but the coach will tell him that is not necessarily the way I asked you to run the play. Sometimes communication can be misleading and sometimes communication might not be exactly the way that one side sees it playing out and to me the only the only way I can see it is this is a divorce between a very long couple 18 years is an eternity in the National Football League Aaron Rodgers is blessed to have been able to play 18 years and the Packers have been blessed to have him as a starter for 15. So no matter how this thing would inevitably end it was not going to end very easily for either side and I think that's what leaves it with conflicting kind of emotions the way that you have with Aaron Rodgers and I'm sure if you would if you would ask and it would be honest you know the personnel in the front office for the Green Bay Packers probably feel a little emotional themselves. John Kuhn what can jet fans expect out of Aaron Rodgers at this stage of his career? Boy I'll tell you there are a couple things I noticed out of last year not a great season for Aaron Rodgers stat wise but we know about the broken thumb we know about some of the other little nagging injuries that he had throughout the year but the one thing I still saw was the ability to put footballs in positions that over the course of his career I've only ever seen him and potentially Patrick Mahomes be able to do put balls in spaces that you cannot even fathom that you can't imagine and he had a handful plays of those every single game there's there's many reasons why the Packers offense was not successful last year and part of that was Aaron Rodgers thumb and Aaron Rodgers inability at times to be able to hit open receivers in stride but that guy can still sling it and I remember the motivation he had in 2020 when the Green Bay Packers drafted Jordan Love and I would anticipate that a chip on his shoulder the size of Jordan Love this this trade situation is going to be just that and the Jets can can have a motivated Aaron Rodgers and expect to see a locked in Aaron Rodgers going into the scene can you see them winning a Super Bowl this year you know when you go into an NFL season and players in the NFL ex players in the NFL will always say this you'll hear a ton of players and former players and coaches say this there's about a dozen teams every year that have the potential to win a Super Bowl every team says it but there's really only about 12 I put the Jets right in that category right now whether they've reached that potential or not that remains to be seen how they continue to fill out the roster after the trade is consummated with Aaron Rodgers because that's the big question how much of this salary is going to hit their cap how much of that bonus that that that 59 million bonus is going to hit the Jets cap or the Packers going to have to eat some of that or the Jets going to be able to pick up some other pieces in free agency we know how good their defense is right now I know how great their offensive skill weapons are I watched them firsthand this year they're all young they're all hungry and you get a guy like Aaron Rodgers in there in that locker room I can only imagine that's going to boast the confidence in there you know a couple more pieces to that team and I feel like they might be able to compete for an AFC. John Kuhn here with us I have to ask you maybe we'll get some breaking news here were you on the list of demands to join Rodgers in New York? No I believe if this had happened about five years ago I might have potentially lucked into that group and got myself a couple bonus years on the end of my career but no he and I do believe Aaron when he says this and sometimes things do get misconstrued within the media was it a demands list or was it a list of hey you know is there anything you'd like to see and and I can believe Aaron would say hey there's there's a couple players out there that I think might be able to help you guys and it's x y and z and if you guys can accomplish those things it would only make our locker room better it would only make our team better I don't believe that he said you have to get three out of four of these guys in order for me to come there I don't believe that for a second I do actually believe Aaron when he says it was just a you know a collection of guys that he thought were were guys that would enhance the production of the team and the chemistry in the locker room so that I do believe him one and we'll see how many more as of right now it's just Allen Lazard Randall Cobb's a free agent Mercedes Lewis is a free agent and we all know Odell Beckham is a free agent but I'd be impressed if the Jets could pull off Odell Beckham Jr. because he's gonna he's gonna demand a pricey a pricey tag to get in there. John Kuhn do you believe Rodgers when he said he entered the darkness retreat that he was at 90% in terms of the likeliness of him retiring? You know that's something I don't think any of us will ever truly know if he was at 90% I know at the end of my career I never pondered retirement but I was never a guy to find myself in a place where I could I could demand a team pick me up and and just be able to play so that's a tremendous luxury that not a lot of players have there have been a handful of players and when I say a handful people make a list of hundreds but in a vast in in the scope of the NFL in in a league that has over 2200 players every year in it there are a handful of players that can choose when they're done that's got to be an incredible feeling to say I am done now so I can I can only take him at his word that he was at 90% retirement I'll tell you one thing to have to have your mind changed that much in four days of darkness I can only wonder what kind of things go through your mind when you are sitting there for those four days.

Have you talked to him since the darkness retreat just wondering? Yes I have I've talked to him a couple times and I'll tell you this he does not seem to be in a sieging type of mood you know I've seen that and he's you know going to try and he tried to to light the the world on fire today I I think Aaron Rodgers simply wants to control the narrative about himself and he wants to try and clear the airwaves about himself and about the experiences that he goes through because once again um the majority of the players in the NFL they don't get the coverage that Aaron Rodgers gets and this has been a story that's been talked about every single day since the end of the football season so those those stories that started at the end of the season Zach what we had the conversation at the end of the season it was 50-50 and you asked me to make a decision at the end and I said if I have to make a decision if I have to I'm going to lean to Aaron Rodgers coming back to the Green Bay Packers and I do believe this I believe had things played out a little bit differently at the end of the season and into this offseason Aaron Rodgers could potentially still be the quarterback of the Green Bay Packers. What do you mean by that what would it have to play out differently like them just make the playoffs or the Packers just say hey we want you back? Well I think had the Packers finished the season with the win against the Lions that could potentially have uh have tilted the scales just enough I do believe that this was a tough call and I do believe at the end of the season when Mark Murphy and Brad Gudinkins and Matt LaFleur all talked to the media and they said yeah you know he's we made a big investment in him and and we don't intend to break that investment I believe they were serious at that point in time but as weeks go by and days go by and you're watching film and you're thinking about what went wrong the year before and you're thinking about Jordan Love's full attendance in the offseason program and you're thinking about Aaron Rodgers potentially pondering retirement I believe those things can all weigh and I think people can can be shaded to go one way or another and I think that's what potentially happened in this situation I mean the darkness retreat was was only but about two weeks ago so there's there's a large period of time that that the front office had to ponder this there was a large period of time that Aaron Rodgers could have put an end to all of this and said I'm coming back to be a Green Bay Packer and finish my career there so the communication I get what Aaron's saying he wishes there was more transparency with the Green Bay Packers I would not be surprised the Green Bay Packers wish there was more transparency out of Aaron Rodgers as well. Wrapping up with John Kuhn uh Jordan Love expectations for him this year because that's what I think is the biggest change from this year compared to last two off seasons the Packers now think and they've said this that Jordan Love is ready to play they definitely have that's that's something that I know from my dealings with the team that he had shown improvement not from not just from year one to year two and year two to year three but he showed improvement from this year's preseason throughout the regular season a lot of people don't realize this Jordan Love took the majority of the first team snaps this year for the Green Bay Packers at practice because Aaron Rodgers missed so many practices with his thumb injury Jordan Love took more snaps as he won this year than he ever has and because of that Jordan Love had growth at practice that the Green Bay Packers saw his tangible growth throughout the course of the season and it culminated in a pretty decent fourth quarter against the NFC champion Philadelphia Eagles at Philadelphia in a Sunday night football game there's a lot of people that point to that and say yeah there's something eerily similar here to the way Aaron Rodgers came in in 2007 a week 13 game against the Dallas Cowboys and almost brought us back to a win against that year's number one seed in the playoffs so there's a lot of feelings about that there's a lot of excitement about Jordan Love but there's one thing Zach that's that's true this kid has an unfair amount of expectations that he's going to have to live up to and it might not be this year but it's gonna it's gonna be a very fast learning curve of expectations for Jordan Love because he's following up 30 years of hall of fame quarterback play let me get to a few outside of the Packers and Jets and and Rodgers and Love and all that stuff John Kuhn one of your other former teams the Saints they go with Derek Carr they also bring in Jamal Williams today when you look at the Saints what do you think they could do this year well it's going to be tough their defense is what's carried them the last few years and right now they have defensive pieces left and right you know leaving to go play elsewhere I know David Onyemada is now an Atlanta Falcon I know they lost Marcus Davenport that's going to be a tough one for them to to try and make up there they have been trying to solve the quarterback position for the last few years there they've been doing it with duct tape and rubber bands they hope that Derek Carr is the fix there and the balance of power for the Saints because they've been carried by the defense the last few years if Derek Carr can raise the level of that offensive Michael Thomas can come back to be an all-pro caliber wide receiver if Alvin Kamara can come back to be an all-pro caliber running back for the Saints they can be competitive especially in a a down a NFC south but I don't know because that defense which has been a very tough defense for the last few years they're losing some significant pieces down there what are your expectations for Sean Payton and Russell Wilson this year you're one in Denver together well I gotta say I love the start of Sean Payton going out there fixing the offensive line I really thought they would be in play for a David Montgomery or Jamal Williams a back that they could pound the football with because Sean Payton loves to run duo to set up the play action um clearly they're going to be more run focused going into this season to try and take some of the pressure off of Russell Wilson that defense we know is fantastic out there and he's going to change a culture might not happen overnight but he's going to change a culture because Sean Payton will burn that midnight oil until he figures out the recipe for for success out there and it might not be with Russell Wilson throwing the football around like he used to do it you know in his last couple years in Seattle it might go back to the old school Russell Wilson where he hands the ball a lot and then has to make a play on third down last thing I'll ask you and I know that Mac if he asked us to to Rogers and Rogers have yelled that AJ knew for a while and he just didn't say anything publicly did you know for a few days that that this was coming and that Rogers is going to say okay I'm going to the Jets did he tell you that yeah uh there was a couple of us that that had known for a little while and uh you know a couple of us in the media specifically and it we owe our respect to our teammate to our friend to give him the opportunity to to do things the way that he wants to do it and the uh and the way that that any player would would want it to be broken and for that kind of courtesy you know we we respect the fact that he trusted in us and and for that I I didn't say anything and I'll say this too I'll say this too I think this to be absolutely true I think the New York Jets and I think the Green Bay Packers also made it a point to not spill the beans so that Aaron Rogers could at least have this time this moment to uh to be able to address it publicly so that he could have that that kind of uh I I guess flushing of all his feelings before this whole thing transpired hey by the way when do you think this deal will actually go down like how long of a fight do you think this is going to be on the compensation if any idea what Green Bay is going to get back uh you know that's a tough one because I I don't think Green Bay is asking for two firsts or the world or anything crazy like that at the same time I don't think the Jets are low balling the Packers I think there are some I I don't think they're that far away a lot of times with deals like this there is so much public scrutiny there's so much attention with the national media that both sides want to get it done with and get it done with fast but again you're talking about a caliber player of Aaron Rogers when Tom Brady left New England to go to Tampa Bay it wasn't via trade when Peyton Manning left the Colts to go to Denver it wasn't via trade I don't know if I've ever seen a player of this caliber change teams via a trade like this at this point in time in his career John Coon while the Packers and Aaron Rogers may be divorcing I know this was a fear of yours in the start of our conversation that we may be divorcing not we may be divorcing that will not be the case we will always invite you on this show because you do a great job whenever you join us and we're always appreciative of the time hey I appreciate you too Zach take care of my man thanks so much there he is John Coon tremendous tremendous stuff we'll take a break and come on back react to that after these short messages nothing's better than feeling comfortable in your own shoes maybe you're a parent raising a little rock star or a tech nomad working from anywhere Allbirds wants you to be comfortable in your actual shoes too they're wool shoes their wool runners pipers and loungers are so 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Hickey what was your biggest takeaway from that conversation because I have one that comes to mind but you listen back to that 20-25 minute chat that we have with them what's your biggest takeaway? I guess how close John made it seem like Aaron Rodgers could have returned for 2023 again everything that you have heard from the Packers perspective any question they've been asked about Aaron Rodgers's future since the day the season ended has been open-ended and oh you know we'd love everyone back and they never would answer any question directly and then we get to the combine it's basically they're saying it out saying it yeah we're done with it we're ready to move on to Jordan Love and John is saying that maybe you win the Lions game now I think you probably have to go on a big playoff run to be honest to have Aaron Rodgers come back but it seems like maybe according to John at least there's a greater chance of Rodgers being back in Green Bay for 2023 than I ever would have thought once the season ended or maybe even halfway through the season. I'm in a similar boat that you are you are but I just took a different direction with it in terms of how close this could have been to a return in the immediate stages of the end of the year we all know the communication could have been better and John basically even said it this was a married couple that's been together had a lot of great memories and the divorce was was ugly because one side knew what they wanted the other side knew what they wanted they just weren't communicating to one another but I really do think if they would have made the playoffs it may have been tougher for the Packers to go down this road because missing the playoffs I really think gave them the out and they could sell it as this is it this is over I know after we drafted Jordan Love and they had a lot of egg on their face he wins back-to-back MVPs but even though there were shortcomings in the postseason they were hidden because they were in the playoffs they won the back-to-back MVPs I think the play this year is what made them be able to say okay now we're justified for drafting Jordan Love and it was kind of a rush because of their past moves to say okay the last two years we took it on the chin now this year even though he was injured hey he missed the playoffs couldn't beat the Lions at the end of the year and his numbers weren't all that great so I really do think that if they would have made the playoffs even though you would have said well what and I imagine you would argue this Hickey well they wouldn't have gone any further than in previous years I think just making the playoffs with Rogers not being healthy this year would still show that okay I could get the job done in Green Bay and it would have made it tougher for him to move on so I get what you're saying in the communication I was just more I don't want to say impressed in the answer by Kuhn but just more looking at it how slightly differently this could have gone down it's just the play on the field and the team success was slightly a little better but it's like if you look at who they would have played they would have played the 49ers in round one is anything going that much different probably Packers 49ers compared to what we saw at Seahawks 49ers I don't think so now they would have been playing the 49ers with Brock Purdy and I know Brock Purdy won all those games and and and everything but who would have known like maybe they maybe they would have beat them this year with Brock Purdy as the quarterback I can't say that the Packers I would have no faith I don't even know if they would get the score any closer than the Seahawks it was a final score 41 21 or something like that got out of hand right after the Gino the Gino Smith turnover is what opened up the floodgates but it's like if did Aaron Rogers really play that well at any point this year that made you think like oh this would be they have a way better of a fighter's chance than the Seahawks no no but I think if you would have made the playoffs even with the injury and they're in the postseason I think it just would have been a little bit tougher for them to move on and I think the two what we're talking about blended together the play on the field wasn't that good and then also the communication that they were playing and then also the communication between the two was horrible and I think it was more likely that Rogers was inclined to return but the Packers basically said we're done with you Rogers who says oh I knew I was done at the end of the year that final game that's I walked off Randall Cobb baloney I don't actually buy that Rogers wanted to finish his career in Green Bay but he realized that just wasn't going to happen and once you had the lack of communication between the two that's where really there was no looking back for both sides because that's when it got contentious what I also don't get because like you said John Coon you mentioned that both sides could have communicated better this is the third year we're talking about the same problem well like actually it's communication well hold on if you remember last year when John joined us he said that the communication between Gudekunz and Rogers was much better and I don't want to say called them like friends because it's a working relationship but he said they do see like eye to eye so if they improve from 2020 to 2021 then what happened in 2022 when it seemingly went back down the same path that we were on draft night when all of a sudden Aaron Rodgers sitting there goes oh Jordan loves what quarterback once again first round it's it's pretty good it's the conflicting feelings of you drafted Jordan Love and the ego part of it of even though Rodgers made you basically admit that you were wrong the first two years because he went back to back MVPs and he had to give him that contract extension was probably not by design anytime there was a window to be open to go back to Jordan Love they were going to go back to Jordan Love like I know that Jordan Love got all these reps and practices this year because Rodgers was heard and Jordan Love played one good quarter up against Eagles they don't really know what they got in Jordan Love they're going based off their initial draft analysis that they thought he was good enough to go move up for in the first round so the communication could have got better but still at the end of the day you're not going to fully change someone and in the back of the mind Gudekunz knew what he was going to eventually do and that was going to be move on from Aaron Rodgers and go to Jordan Love he's just waiting for that window to open so just say it John they felt good enough to where again they they they left it ambiguous they did not answer any questions so they're not put themselves in a you know pigeon on themselves they said Aaron Rodgers has come back he's our guy then three weeks later to trade him they were as intentional as they could have been the last few weeks of basically doing everything to tell you Rodgers is not going to be here except saying those exact words can we please like we are grown-ups here we are professionals well they're not can someone just truly say what you're feeling and what you're thinking let me get Marco Belletti in here and I have a question because I usually think Marco is good in deciphering BS Aaron Rodgers claimed when he went into whatever cave darkness retreat thing that he was going to he's at 90 percent retirement do you believe that nope not even a little bit yeah I didn't either Hickey would believe that he's like why would he lie nonsense total drama and why do you think that is just because he loves the the drama and he loves building up the story now it's a lie of the redemption and motivation to go to go prove the Packers wrong when I go to the did he contemplate retirement yes did he seriously contemplate retirement no no the guy always wanted to play always knew he wanted to play the idea that he was 90 percent once you get to 90 percent it's nonsense you're not coming back something's really got to drive you to come back and it's not coming out of the darkness and it's not the Jets that's nonsense that's garbage he didn't want to retire and that's fine but he likes to be able to say things that kind of like oh wow so you really did think about that's what he likes that's what he likes I'm 100 with you now do you view the Jets heading into the season as a Super Bowl contender yeah no doubt I again to me I don't get there's a difference between I get the elite of the elite I understand but when you're in the NFL do I think you're gonna make the playoffs do I think you can make noise in the playoffs yes now you're a Super Bowl contender that's that's the bottom line like there's a difference between do I think you can squeak in if everything goes right and maybe you win nine games to get into the playoffs and that's your ceiling then no you're not a Super Bowl contender but once I truly believe you're a playoff team I'd be surprised if you didn't make the playoffs once you get there who the hell knows they're in that spot because the Jets have enough talent and Rogers is still that good I don't care that he's had all kinds of issues in the playoffs I don't care he's been the pride's made too many times he hasn't won enough Super Bowls bottom line this guy can still play and when you put him on a team you're automatically right then and there a contender the also the thing that I think is lost in this when he's in Green Bay and I know right now he's the face of the jet franchise right and he's the biggest name on the team and all that but when you're in Green Bay like that is literally that team's relying on you the Jets are bringing you in and I know will be viewed as the savior and the greatest quarterback in Jets history right that like the greatest talented position all that but that team last year being able to play great defense you have Garrett Wilson I know Breece Hall got hurt but he was on his way to being rookie of the year and ended up being Garrett Wilson you just need someone that could manage like they won seven games last year with nothing at the quarterback position like Zach Wilson was so bad we were praising Mike White now don't get me wrong you're gonna ask things of Aaron Rodgers but Rogers doesn't need to go throw 50 touchdown passes or 45 touchdown passes and six interceptions he's never a game manager but that's basically what the Jets are gonna ask him to do well he doesn't need to stand on his head if you want to take a hockey turn but at the same time he needs to play he can't be a game manager he needs to be Aaron Rodgers he needs to be the guy that leads they're gonna need not necessarily an MVP performance out of him it doesn't need to be the best he's ever had but it needs to be Aaron Rodgers-esque and not Jacoby Brissett no disrespect it's not a guy that's just holding the spot and just don't make the mistake and oh please just don't screw this up he needs to get them over the top to do that he needs to be the player that he is but based off what they did last year like they had seven wins with nothing at quarterback like there's some games where if they just had Rogers being a game manager I know it doesn't always work that way they probably win three more games yes and that team last year now again it's not going to be the exact same team the Patriots twice and let's see where the salary cap is to be the Bills too let's see where the salary cap is for the Jets too because they're gonna have to make some choices now not only the Rogers contract and Lazard but we'll see how much their defense takes a hit on certain things that they have to do um let's find out exactly what team they have do I think that they are good enough to make noise with a good quarterback yes do I think that they're again take that next leap further with a guy like Aaron Rodgers 100% absolutely but he needs to play his part he can't just be along for the ride because that's not going to do it for the Jets either and the biggest thing is going to be when they get in the playoffs are you going to be able to take advantage of it because like when we say are they a Super Bowl contender like it's tough for me to say that they're going to win a Super Bowl with them just because it was as good as he probably had it in in two three years ago when they're 13 and three had the home field advantage he's the MVP of the league you're at Lambeau Field and you only scored one touchdown against the Niners Brady throws three interceptions in the second half right even though you were coming from behind and you couldn't find the way to put the ball in the end zone enough times which is part of the legacy for Aaron Rodgers he's had opportunities now some of them we've absolved him like the one where you know Seattle yeah the Seattle one where the onside kick we didn't say that wasn't his fault I mean the one in Atlanta the run that they did with the beating the Cowboys some of those we just yeah okay hey it is what it is the Niners the the Niners won the NFC title game in the what I think it was the COVID year the year before the 2019 2019 yeah again there are there are plenty though that Rodgers takes a hit that he didn't step up now it wasn't that he was awful and threw four interceptions but he didn't do his part and he needs to do that he has to answer that bell that's part of his legacy in the playoffs now it's got a little bit of a softened blow because he has won a Super Bowl he's won playoff games the Packers basically lived in the NFC title game for 10 years so that's part of it but for the Jets I mean like what this conversation like when we look at it from the jet perspective what are we looking at this jet organization like once you get into the playoffs that's already breaking what a 12-year drought so that's step one then if you can get into a spot where you can possibly play for a Super Bowl which they have not done in 50 odd years yeah like if you think about it difference the highlight for the jet fan that is living right now like most jet fans didn't see 69 you know with Joe Namath is the back-to-back AFC title games where they lost to Indianapolis on what was a good run and then a game against Pittsburgh where they just played better in the first half right they probably would have won that game and been in the Super Bowl I mean there's really there's three you're talking to 50 years and the 98 championship where they fumbled the ball and turned over 100 times against Denver that's it that's the entire jet organization I mean they had the one with the Dolphins too but they beat the Patriots in the playoffs that's probably a highlight for right but that's my point that's that those are divisional rounds like they've only been to the title game off top my head four times since that game in 69 with Joe Namath that's not good so once you get there and you are already started you get into that conversation if he can get them into that position some of those questions that we have for Rogers will still be there but he can help his legacy by just helping the Jets get to spots that they haven't been there's nothing better than feeling comfortable in your own shoes and that doesn't mean flopping down on the couch with bunny slippers maybe you're a parent raising a little rock star or a tech nomad working from anywhere and jumping from one thing to the next whoever you are Allbird wants you to be comfortable in your actual shoes too their wool runners pipers and loungers are designed for a level of coziness that makes you feel like you can do anything you might even forget you're wearing them and their shoes are so stylish they go perfectly with a wear whatever I want attitude Allbirds is all about loving mother nature too because no one wants to leave a bad footprint each shoe is carefully crafted from natural materials that tread lightly on our planet from zq certified merino wool to a bouncy midsole made from sweet foam the world's first carbon negative eva material made from sugarcane you're listening to the Zach Gelb show wrap it up shop Zach Gelb show cbs sports radio so Rogers will be going to the Jets that will eventually happen the question just is how long is it going to take for the Packers and the Jets to agree upon terms I really don't think either side really has more leverage than another because if the Packers wait Rogers just keep on going on McAfee and will blast the organization and then there's a lot of just ugliness that gets directed your way and on the jet side you already know he's coming it behooves you to get him in the building and at least just make it official and then you could actually operate officially with Rogers a part of your roster so I'm gonna play the role of Joe Douglas here I'm gonna offer you two deals Hickey but you don't know that are either enough for you to make this deal or do you want to go through this ugly dance okay deal or no deal let's do it deal one I'm offering you a conditional three it turns into a two if you make the playoffs and it turns into a one if the Jets make the AFC title game would you take that deal no okay deal number two I'm offering you conditional two it turns into a one if the Jets make the AFC title game and also give you a future for no why not I want a first round pick no stipulations no not based on Aaron Rodgers in the in the playoffs they really have a like to stand on yeah I'll hold on to him I'll change you eventually but the longer I wait and hold on to him the less you have access to him and the longer it's gonna take for him to get going with his new team I understand what you're saying but the moment Rogers just keeps on going on McAfee and killing the organization good luck with good luck with Gouda Coons uh you know looking good there I mean look a little bad PR I'm I thought we thought the same thing at the Browns and Baker last year right this time last year they held on to Baker Mayfield through the summer to or into the you know into the springtime well into the springtime after the shot into some Watson nothing happened there well also I don't know how many teams are also calling for Baker Mayfield as well that was by no one that was part of the thing there's no marker for Baker I was waiting for him to get released and the the Brown just kept on waiting for a miracle to happen until they finally said okay you're out of here but that lasted a lot longer than we thought you also don't want to have this keep on hanging over your organization's head if you're Green Bay and it just creates a further distraction when you're trying to work in a new quarterback and I know that everyone knows he's going to uh to Jordan Love but all then Rogers has to do is show up and say hey I should attend some of these off-season events because I'm still on your roster and then that could get really really ugly I actually think that's a fair offer the two and it gets into a one if we make the AFC title game you know in terms of the Jets all righty anyway that's the Zach Gelb show on CBS Sports Radio good stuff today appreciate you joining us along the way we'll be back tomorrow at 6 p.m eastern 3 pacific like to thank John Fanta for stopping by Daryl Moose Johnston Bart Winkler and then also John Coon we out bye-bye talk to you tomorrow everybody peace