With the Packers off to a 4-1 start this season, the Aaron Rodgers drama that dominated the offseason seems like a distant memory. However, as soon as the 2021 season ends, there’s a good chance that last year’s drama is going to pick up right where it left off and that’s because Rodgers still doesn’t necessarily seem interested in staying in Green Bay.
If Rodgers does end up leaving, there’s one team he definitely won’t be playing for in 2022 or ever, and that team is the Chicago Bears. During his press conference on Wednesday, the Packers quarterback was asked if he could ever see himself playing for the Bears and he didn’t hesitate with his answer.
“No, no,” Rodgers said, via Packerwire. “It’s just not going to happen, man.”
That answer likely caused a sigh of relief among Packers fans, who definitely don’t want to see their star quarterback playing for a division rival, especially after what happened roughly 10 years ago. After a messy divorce from the Packers following the 2007 season, Brett Favre was traded to the Jets in 2008, but he eventually ended up with the Vikings. Rodgers is now in a similar situation: Since he’s under contract for 2022, he’ll likely have to be traded if he’s going to leave. If that happens, it’s not crazy to envision a scenario where he sticks with a team for one year (2022) and then picks a team the following season like Favre did.
The good news for Packers fans is that it doesn’t sound like Rodgers will be picking the Bears. Rodgers was asked about his interest in Chicago because he had been complimenting Bears fans during his press conference.
“I’ve always enjoyed the city, enjoyed the fans even though they haven’t enjoyed me, I get it,” Rodgers said. “Maybe there’ll be a little more love when my time comes to an end playing here. But I do have a lot of respect for the city and the sports.”
Rodgers is probably pretty pumped to be playing the Bears this weekend and that’s because he almost never loses to them. The Packers quarterback has faced the Bears a total of 26 times in his career and he’s 21-5 against them. Since Matt LaFleur was hired in 2019, the Packers are 4-0 against the Bears and they’ve won those four games by an average of 12.5 points per game.
In this week’s game, Rodgers will be going up against Justin Fields, who will be the eighth Bears quarterback Rodgers has faced in his career. Although the Bears won’t be landing Rodgers, they’ll likely be just fine with that as Fields is able to deliver the continuity at the quarterback position that the team has lacked for several decades now.
Latest Odds: Chicago Bears +5.5
