While football is a team sport, and all 53 players on an NFL roster play a valuable role in their squad’s success, whether or not the Green Bay Packers are able to claim their fifth Lombardi Trophy in 2023 hinges on the shoulders of one person. If quarterback Aaron Rodgers elects to return to the Packers in 2023, the cheeseheads have a shot (however small) at popping champagne next February, just as they have in every healthy season that he’s been the starter. If the enigmatic quarterback (whose Twitter profile picture has been an image of his bare foot for more than a year) decides to jump town, however, Green Bay is likely finished before the season ever starts.
As it stands on February 20, the Packers are listed at or around +2500 to win it all at a variety of sportsbooks, good for the top third of the league and one of the best teams in the NFC. Even though Green Bay missed the playoffs in 2022, slumping to third place in the NFC North division, that’s to be expected. If there’s even a shadow of a chance that Rodgers suits up in green and gold this upcoming season, sportsbooks aren’t going to want to preemptively put the final nail in the Packers’ coffin, but you can bet on Fanduel with their Promo Code knowing this. Despite all of his bizarre off-the-field headlines, Rodgers is one of the most gifted quarterbacks of all time—if not the most—and his combination of mental acuity (at least in a football sense) and breathtaking arm strength, accuracy, and mobility makes him a game breaker.
If Rodgers decides to retire or force his way out of Wisconsin, however, those odds will plummet faster than the stock market did in the fall of 1929.
When the outside world last heard from Rodgers during his weekly appearance on former Colts punter Pat McAfee’s podcast, he was planning to embark on a ‘darkness retreat’ in order to decide what to do with the remainder of his career. Per the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, “a darkness retreat is a total isolation experience, often in secluded locations, where you are in complete darkness for a select number of days. Rodgers will spend four days in a one-room house at an unannounced location.”
It’s a practice long used for meditation in religions like Buddhism and Taoism, more recently co-opted by New Age westerners.
If Rodgers’ decides to continue his career in a place other than Green Bay after this, his strange behavior (combined with his recent injury history and his advanced age) could tank their ability to trade him for a good return. The New York Jets have apparently soured on the idea of trading for Rodgers because his unpredictable actions could cause them to miss out on other options—like quarterback Derek Carr— if he suddenly decides to change course.
Former Packers writer Bob McGinn told Fox News on February 20 that Green Bay’s management is disgusted with Rodgers’ behavior, so the Packers’ Super Bowl odds could swing wildly in the coming days if the situation comes to a head.
A Look at the Field: the Rest of the NFC North
When forecasting what a team will do in the upcoming season, it’s always a good idea to look at their competition. Unfortunately for prospective Packer’s predictors, the NFC North is in a state of flux. The Minnesota Vikings were one of the best regular season teams in the standings in 2022, winning the division with a 13-4 record, but they still managed to have a negative point differential, making them a prime pick to regress. The Vikings will be accused of being frauds for as long as Kirk Cousins is their quarterback.
The Detroit Lions are going to be a preseason sweetheart as a dark horse pick, as the team improved dramatically in their second season under the leadership of head coach Dan Campbell and general manager Brad Holmes. Detroit barely missed out on a playoff berth last season, falling victim to questionable calls in a Week 18 game between the Seahawks and Rams that froze the Lions out of the playoffs while opening the door for Seattle.
The Chicago Bears will have the most cap space in the league when the 2023 NFL season begins in earnest with the free agent signing period, nearly double that of the next closest team, and they’ve got a talented young quarterback—albeit one in an awful situation—in Justin Fields. Whether or not Detroit and Chicago manage to actually pull it together for once and shake off decades of futility is anyone’s guess.
Can they? Sure, anything’s possible. Will they? No. Regardless of who starts at qb this team is talented or well coached enough to beat some of the real contenders out there at this point. You can point to a number of contenders and say “X is what they’re good at”, some even have a few strengths. I don’t know wtf Green Bay’s good at anymore except examples of what not to do.
isn’t* talented or well coached enough.
“If Rodgers decides to retire or force his way out of Wisconsin, however, those odds will plummet faster than the stock market did in the fall of 1929.”
EXCUSE ME, have you not heard of Jordan Love?
A budding franchise QB who was drafted and developed to be the heir apparent and the unprecedented trifecta of 3 HOF QB’s, in a row.
With Love under center running MLF’s offense the way it was meant to be run.
Surely the Packers are favorites to get to the Super Bowl.
Super Bowl or Bust!!
In Love we Trust!!
Explain it to them Big Tom M.
I’m guessing last year Aaron Rodgers and Packers had better “odds” of making the SB than the Philadelphia Eagles. Such talk in February is next to pointless. Aaron Rodgers may or may not increase you’re odds but if you’ve seen Rodgers play in the playoffs the last three years, you know he’s not going to a SB no matter what team he’s on. “The Vikings will be accused as frauds as long as Kirk Cousins is QB.” The same could be said for Rodgers in Green Bay. “The Bears have a talented, young QB in Justin Fields.” Like most, I would agree, while Kevin and Warren Sapp will beg to differ. Consider the source. Have no idea what kind of GM Ryan Poles will be but a strong draft and some shrewd FA signings along with the continued development of Justin Fields and Chicago could very well be one of the most improved teams in the NFL. Having a franchise QB is half the battle and they appear to have one. While Detroit will always have limitations with Dan Campbell and Jared Goff. For the Packers it all hinges on Jordan Love and what his ceiling might be. Until we’re willing to break from the past, we’ll be held hostage by it…..
Well, i read about Rodgers options, where i can wager on NFL games, and what the rest of the division looks like.
Plus what a weirdo Rodgers is.
I couldn’t seem to find anything about “ways to make the Packers better in 2023”.
Not a thing.
If you want real Packer news and expert Packer assessment, come subscribe to the pro’s here at golongtd.
Or, just read Big Tom’s comments.
Ok, i spent a day in total darkness trying to figure out all the ways the Packers can make themselves better in 2023.
1) Push more money down the road, 3 years running.
2) Get a proven receiver (like all the pundits think the Packers have needed to do. (duh).
3) Burn magic incense by the lockers of Stokes (to play tighter), Wyatt, (to justify a 1st round pick playing a consistent full season), Doubs and Watson (to be consistent contributors the whole season).
4) Getting some estimates concerning a brain transplant for our friend Quay Walker. Not only eliminating repeating doofus actions, but possibly raising his wonderlic score up to 11, maybe 11 and a 1/2.
Also possibly getting him to be more instinctive like all good MLB’s are as a means to making plays.
5) Absolutely, positively, get rid of Rodgers and start Jordan Love from Week 1 if they have any hope of the Packers getting to the Super Bowl in 2023.
What could go wrong?
6) Keeping the team of Murphy/Gute together, operating at the high level we’re accustomed too.
I’ve reached out to JC Tretter, asking him to advise me how i can get the Packers to extend the Packers mandatory step down age of the President from 75 to 80.
Lets be honest…we can’t afford to lose Murphy, or Gute for that matter.
Why neither of them have won Executive of the Year awards is well beyond my understanding.
Sometimes it angers me so bad that i track down stupid people on internet forums and send my Mom and sister to go bitch slap the stink out of them, and anyone else in the Trailer Park that might get in the way.