When the Green Bay Packers traded Aaron Rodgers to the New York Jets during this past offseason, many believed it signaled the beginning of a new “dark age” for the franchise. After 30 years of Hall of Fame caliber quarterback play, the Packers decided it was time for their 2020 first round pick, Jordan Love, to take over under center.
The split between Rodgers and the organization was not a pretty one. There was plenty of blame thrown around by both parties, neither one taking responsibility for why things had deteriorated to the point that they had. Of course, things had been tense between Rodgers and the Packers since the moment they drafted Love.
To each party’s credit, though, each of them has always done what they have felt is right by Love. Rodgers, despite his feelings about having his successor drafted, refused to alienate Love like he had been alienated by Brett Favre. Instead, he took the young quarterback under his wing and took an active and positive role in Love’s development.
While Rodgers has expressed regret over how things ended with Green Bay (but not regret over his part in it), he has always been supportive of Love and the team. He doubled down on these sentiments on “The Pat McAfee Show” Tuesday.
Rodgers, as many people know, loves to carry a chip on his shoulder. It gives him a competitive edge. Sometimes, he will turn the slightest thing into motivation. Obviously, the way things ended with the Packers may fuel his fire, but says he is not rooting for them to lose. In fact, he’s hoping for the opposite:
“Am I surprised by how he’s playing? No. Am I happy for him? Hell yeah. Some people were probably thinking I was rooting against the Packers this year, rooting against Jordan. Couldn’t be further from the truth. I’m not a bitter person about that.
“Obviously, I wish things would have gone different when I was in Green Bay and there’s things I wish I would have done better. But I have so much love for the organization. I have so many people I still talk to every single week that work there. If I catch Jordan’s game I usually send him a message.”
It makes sense that Rodgers is still rooting for the Packers to succeed. He has a lot of friends left on the roster. It also must make him feel some sort of satisfaction to see Love playing so well. Commentators and analysts often remark that Love’s throws look like ones Rodgers made, evidence of the work he put into helping Love become successful.
In a small way, Love’s success is Rodgers’ success.
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