Former Jets QB makes bold Aaron Rodgers trade prediction

Former New York Jets quarterback and current "The NFL Today" analyst Boomer Esiason is as confident as ever Gang Green will soon land Green Bay Packers star Aaron Rodgers.

"At the end of the day, I still firmly believe, and I’m not backing off, that it’s gonna happen, and it will happen relatively soon," Esiason said about the often-discussed trade during Friday's edition of his WFAN radio show, per Ryan Chichester of Audacy. "I think before the draft. I do believe the Jets and Packers will swap first-round picks. I do think it will be part of the equation."

Esiason has ties to the Jets and has repeatedly offered updates on the situation. After he poured cold water over a rumor regarding the San Francisco 49ers potentially swooping in and grabbing Rodgers, Jets general manager Joe Douglas declared at an event hosted by Esiason that the future Hall of Famer is "gonna be here." 

However, Jets cornerback Sauce Gardner raised eyebrows throughout the NFL community when he more recently and less confidently said he's merely "hoping" the trade for Rodgers happens. The two sides reportedly remain split as it pertains to draft-pick compensation and also protection for at least one draft asset in the event Rodgers retires after spending just one season with the Jets. 

Jets beat reporter Brian Costello of the New York Post wrote Thursday that "the sticking point in the negotiations remains the Packers' demand that the Jets include their 2024 first-round pick in any deal." Instead, New York prefers to send Green Bay "a conditional 2024 pick, a second-day pick that can become a first-round choice if certain conditions are met" such as Rodgers leading the Jets to a conference title game or the 39-year-old earning Most Valuable Player honors for the fifth time of his career. 

It's widely believed a trade won't happen until after June 1 unless it is finalized before the start of the draft's second round next Friday night. While Gardner and Jets fans have sounded worried, Esiason has essentially borrowed from Rodgers and suggested that everybody should just R-E-L-A-X ahead of the weekend.