GM reveals if Jets gave Aaron Rodgers ultimatums for possible return

Shortly after it was learned that the New York Jets would be moving on from quarterback Aaron Rodgers this offseason, a report suggested that recently hired general manager Darren Mougey and first-time head coach Aaron Glenn wanted Rodgers to give up his weekly appearances on "The Pat McAfee Show" and promise to "attend all training camp practices" to return to the team. 

While speaking with reporters on Tuesday, Mougey poured cold water over such claims. 

"I will say this," Mougey remarked, as shared by Charean Williams of Pro Football Talk. "There was never an ultimatum or rules of engagement for Aaron to potentially join the Jets again. That never happened."

It's unclear if some of Rodgers' teammates were annoyed by the "McAfee Show" appearances that occurred as the 2024 Jets endured what became a 5-12 season. With that said, the perception exists that team owner Woody Johnson wasn't thrilled with the fact that Rodgers skipped the club's two-day mandatory minicamp because of a pre-planned trip to Egypt last offseason after the 41-year-old suffered a campaign-ending torn Achilles in September 2023. 

Following the initial report about the so-called "rules of engagement," NFL insider Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated insisted that Rodgers was given "no ultimatum" about his "appearances on different platforms." It has since been said that Rodgers "wanted his time in New York to come to an end" because he "knew this chapter was over a while ago." 

On Tuesday, Mougey said he and Glenn determined "that it was the best thing for the Jets moving forward to go in a different direction" at the position. 

"A lot of respect for Aaron Rodgers as a player," Mougey added. "First-ballot Hall of Famer. Wish him nothing but the best, but that was a decision we made and look forward to kind of moving past that into this next process here with free agency and the draft."

Stories have linked the Jets with current Pittsburgh Steelers backup Justin Fields, but it sounds like Fields could re-sign with Pittsburgh before the free-agent negotiating window opens on March 10. In a mock draft published on Tuesday, ESPN's Mel Kiper Jr. predicted that the Jets will be able to select Colorado signal-caller Shedeur Sanders with the seventh overall pick of the upcoming draft.