The long national nightmare is over.
The Green Bay Packers and the New York Jets finally agreed on a trade compensation that will send quarterback Aaron Rodgers to the Jets, according to multiple reports. The deal, which comes days before the NFL draft, was hammered out more than a month after the future Hall of Famer confirmed he wanted to play for New York — and months after speculation that Green Bay could look to move on.
According to ESPN, the Jets will receive Rodgers, the 15th pick and a 2023 fifth rounder (pick 170) in exchange for the 13th pick, a second-round pick (No. 42), a sixth-round pick (No. 207) and a conditional second-rounder in 2024 that can become a first-round pick if Rodgers plays at least 65 percent of New York’s snaps.
Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst said the deal hasn’t been finalized, but should be completed before the draft begins Thursday.
“We were expecting it to be done very quickly, hopefully soon,” Gutekunst said. “A lot of things have been agreed upon. Some things to go through.”
The Packers ended up receiving a lot more for Rodgers than they did for former quarterback Brett Favre, who they also sent to the Jets in 2008 for a conditional fourth-round pick.
Talks between the Packers and Jets had reportedly broken down in recent weeks over disagreements in compensation. Rodgers, a four-time MVP, told former punter Pat McAfee in March that he wanted to play for the Jets in 2023.
“We’ve been working on this for a while,” Gutekunst said. “To get beyond the draft I think would have been tough for both teams.”
Rodgers is coming off a season in which he threw for 3,695 yards, 26 touchdowns and 12 interceptions in 17 games as Green Bay went a disappointing 8-9. Before that, however, the 39-year-old won back-to-back MVPs in 2020 and 2021 respectively.
This article is based in part on wire service reports.
• Matthew Paras can be reached at mparas@washingtontimes.com.
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