The New York Jets are reportedly "actively working to reach an agreement" with free agent wide receiver Allen Lazard amid reports that they're the favorite to land his former quarterback Aaron Rodgers in a trade with the Green Bay Packers, ESPN's Adam Schefter reports.
"Jets are actively working to reach an agreement with Packers’ free-agent WR Allen Lazard, per league sources. There is another team involved, and no final decision, but the Jets are trying to reunite Lazard and OC Nathaniel Hackett," Schefter tweeted.
The reported move has an obvious connection to Rodgers, who has been Lazard's quarterback with the Packers throughout the receiver's five-year NFL career, but the Jets reportedly "like the player in their offense regardless of the QB," according to ESPN's Jeremy Fowler.
Lazard caught 168 passes for 2,216 yards and 19 touchdowns from Rodgers, Schefter reported. On Monday (March 13), longtime former ESPN anchor Trey Wingo reported that he was "hearing Rodgers to the Jets is done," though both Schefter and NFL Network's Ian Rapoport refuted that a deal had been officially reached.
Wingo's tweet came days after Rodgers met with Jets owner Woody Johnson and a contingent of team representatives in California on March 7. The move would also reunite Rodgers with recently hired offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett, who had previously held the same position with the Packers from 2019 to 2021.
New York had previously acquired Rodgers' predecessor, Brett Favre, in a trade with the Packers in 2008, which led to the eventual four-time NFL MVP taking over as Green Bay's starting quarterback for the remainder of his tenure with the franchise.
Last month, ESPN's Adam Schefter reported that the Jets were "a very real scenario" in a possible trade for Rodgers even prior to the hiring of Hackett, who the quarterback had publicly praised following his hiring as the Denver Broncos' head coach last offseason. Rodgers led the NFL's top scoring offense during the first of two consecutive Associated Press Most Valuable Player award-winning seasons in 2020, both of which took place during Hackett's tenure with the Packers.
Rodgers signed a three-year, $150 million extension with the Packers last offseason amid previous reports of being disgruntled with the franchise. The 39-year-old was coming off back-to-back MVP seasons ahead of the 2022 NFL season, which resulted in Green Bay missing the playoffs after clinching a postseason berth during the previous three consecutive seasons and 11 of the past 13 years.
Rodgers leads all Packers quarterbacks with 475 touchdowns and ranks second in franchise history behind only Favre in QB wins (147), completions (5,001) and passing yards (7,660).
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