Aaron Rodgers says goodbye to Green Bay in social media post

Aaron Rodgers is finally on his way to the New York Jets, and on Tuesday night he officially said his goodbye to the Green Bay Packers after 18 years. 

Rodgers posted a lengthy message on Instagram thanking the Packers and Green Bay for his time with the team.

Here is an excerpt of that message.

You can read the entire message here. 

I’m not sure it’s possible to fully express the gratitude that I have to the @packers , our incredible fans, the state of Wisconsin, the thousands of players that I crossed paths with, the incredible men and women who work for the organization, and the amazing people who I got to meet along the way, in one post with 10 pictures, but I hope you read this and feel my heart and soul, filled with love, joy, and peace about my time in green and gold. I grew up in Green Bay, drafted at 21, fell in love with the game, met some lifelong friends, and take with me memories that will last a lifetime.

Rodgers had an incredible run in Green Bay that saw him win four MVPs and keep the Packers as a consistent contender during his time as their starting quarterback. He also led the team to its fourth Super Bowl title during the 2010 season. 

Now he is off to New York where he is going to be tasked with helping to bring the Jets back to relevance. The Jets tried that once before with another former Packers all-time great in Brett Favre, but it did not work out well for anybody. They are hoping it goes a little more according to plan this time.

The Jets were one of the best defensive teams in the NFL during the 2022 season but had some major problems scoring on offense thanks to a revolving door quarterback situation that saw them rotate through Zach Wilson, Mike White and Joe Flacco. 

Rodgers is coming off one of his worst seasons as a pro and will turn 40 years old in December, so there is some significant risk here for the Jets, especially given the trade price it cost them. He should still be a significant upgrade for them.