The first signs of Aaron Rodgers’ impending return to the Green Bay Packers are starting to arrive.
According to Mike Jones of USA TODAY Sports, there’s an “air of optimism” and a “sense of confidence” coming from the team that Rodgers will decide to return to the Packers for the 2022 season.
“Meanwhile, multiple people with ties to the organization conveyed to USA TODAY Sports a sense of confidence that Rodgers will indeed return for an 18th season in Green Bay. The people spoke on condition of anonymity due to the fluidity of the situation,” Jones wrote while reporting from the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis.
Rodgers, now 38, is still deciding his future in football. He can retire, return to the Packers or request a trade out of Green Bay.
General manager Brian Gutekunst was unable to update the situation on Tuesday but said the team is expecting a decision well before the start of the new league year on March 16.
The Packers would be expected to re-do Rodgers’ deal if he returns to Green Bay. A new contract would provide much-needed cap relief as the Packers attempt to put a competitive roster together around the quarterback position.
Rodgers was disgruntled with the team last offseason and wanted out of Green Bay, but a year of mending relationships and improving communication between the team and player has helped pave the way for the four-time NFL MVP to return.
The Packers won 13 regular-season games for the third straight season and were in a position to win two home games to secure a trip to the Super Bowl, but a stunning playoff loss to the 49ers ended the year on a sour note.
Still, with an improved relationship between Rodgers and the Packers has everything pointed in the right direction as the decision looms.
“By year’s end, Rodgers seemed to realize in Green Bay, he had all he ever wanted,” Jones wrote.