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Here’s What Green Bay Packers Must Do to Convince Aaron Rodgers to Stick Around

Published 01/26/2021, 11:20 AM EST

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USA Today via Reuters

In the press conference that followed the Green Bay Packers‘ loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Aaron Rodgers looked like a man defeated.

With not much to say, the quarterback highlighted the disappointment of going through another season without Super Bowl success. But in between one particular statement stood out from the rest.

“A lot of futures are uncertain, myself included.”

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Rodgers’ statement sent shockwaves through the NFL community. The quarterback has, probably for the first time in his career, accepted that his future might not be at Green Bay.

But how did it get to this? Why is the quarterback revered by the Green Bay faithful as their ‘MVP’ considering his future elsewhere?

USA Today via Reuters

The answer lies in how the Green Bay Packers management has gone about conducting business over the past few years. Offering little support to Aaron Rodgers to mount a serious Super Bowl run, the Packers organization has gone about with its own vision.

A vision that, till recently, involved phasing the quarterback out. And their 1st round 2020 draft pick supports that statement.

Drafting quarterback Jordan Love with the 26th overall pick in the draft, the Packers made a statement. A power move of sorts to signal that Aaron Rodgers‘ time was running out.

This comes after the season Rodgers carried his team all the way to the NFC Championship game. Just one win away from a Super Bowl, and the Packers didn’t draft an O-linesman, safety, or wide receiver. Instead, they got another quarterback. The one position they still clearly have sorted out for years to come.

So with Rodgers playing some of the best football of his career, how can the Packers reverse the damage they’ve done?

Aaron Rodgers the Latest Victim of the MVP-Super Bowl Curse

Drafting the right personnel to aid Aaron Rodgers

The Green Bay Packers are a side filed with superstars. But most of that star power isn’t equally distributed across the field. Their O-line, for instance, has gaping holes that need to be filled.

They do have a star in offensive tackle David Bakhtiari, but we also saw how the O-line crumbled against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ blitz. Rodgers was sacked 5 times in the NFC Championship.

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A clear sign that the O-line needs work. While trading for a star would hit their cap space immensely, drafting a promising prospect would go a long way in addressing their woes.

Perhaps they could start off by trading Jordan Love for a higher draft pick and going for someone like inside offensive linesman Alijah Vera-Tucker or Ohio’s Wyatt Davis.

USA Today via Reuters

Another area where the Packers need reinforcement is that of wide receivers. Apart from Davante Adams, Rodgers doesn’t have an elite wideout to aim for.

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Trading Jordan Love for a higher draft pick could help in this aspect given the embarrassment of riches on offer when it comes to wide receivers.

With players like Terrace Marshall Jr. and Kadarius Toney up for grabs, the Packers would do themselves a world of good by going for a wide receiver to make the most of Aaron Rodgers’ magic arm.

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The 2021 Draft Class could end up being the deciding factor as to whether Aaron Rodgers sticks around at Green Bay or not. And given the season Rodgers just had, it’d be foolish to not give Rodgers the players he needs to get the franchise its 5th Super Bowl.

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Written by:

Shivayan Roy

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Shivayan Roy is currently an NFL writer at EssentiallySports. After completing his Masters Diploma in Journalism from the Asian College of Journalism, Roy functioned as a reporter for Goal.com and extensively covered the FIFA U-17 World Cup.
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