Reports: Jets, Aaron Rodgers huddle with Packers’ permission

ESPN, The Athletic and longtime Packers reporter Bob McGinn said the end of the line has arrived for the Packers and Rodgers, with McGinn citing team sources that the front office already has decided to move on from the four-time MVP quarterback.

Rodgers, 39, has direct ties to Jets offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett, who was hired in January.

A trade for Rodgers could be executed on the first day of the NFL league year, March 15. Similar deals in recent years involving Matthew Stafford (Detroit Lions to Los Angeles Rams), Russell Wilson (Seattle Seahawks to Denver Broncos) and Deshaun Watson (Houston Texans to Cleveland Browns) brought significant draft capital in return.

Rodgers was named NFL MVP in 2011, 2014, 2020 and 2021, but his 2022 numbers weren’t up to his own standards as the Packers rebuilt his receiving corps and dealt with injuries on the offensive line. He completed 64.6 percent of his passes for 3,695 yards and 26 touchdowns while tossing 12 interceptions.

Rodgers spent four days on a “darkness retreat” in Oregon, confined to a 300-square foot dwelling that was partially underground, in February. He said the point of the exercise was to be alone with his thoughts, to find full clarity and peace, and calibrate his emotions.

“There’s a finality to the decision. I don’t make it lightly,” he said on a podcast last week. “I don’t want to drag anybody around. I’m answering questions about it because I got asked about it. I’m talking about it because it’s important to me. If you don’t like it and you think it’s drama, and you think I’m being a diva or whatever, then just tune it out. That’s fine. But this is my life. It’s important to me. I’ll make a decision soon enough and we’ll go down that road. I’ll be really excited about it.”

Hackett was a first-time head coach with the Denver Broncos last season. He was fired in December.

The Packers traded Brett Favre to the Jets in 2008, clearing the way for Rodgers to start. Favre announced his retirement in March, but reversed the decision in June.