Legendary former Green Bay Packers defensive back LeRoy Butler blasted Aaron Rodgers after the longtime Packers quarterback publicly acknowledged his intention to play for the New York Jets once the two sides reached a deal.
“I can’t say it enough, that ‘G’ will never change. Sometimes, players — especially the quarterback, the last two quarterbacks to go to the Jets — forget about that. Those guys in the locker room deserve better than this,” Butler told NFL writer Tyler Dunne.
“This is one of the best quotes my Mom gave me: ‘Don’t tell me you love me. Show me you love me’. If I tell you I love you, but treat you terrible, then why are you even telling me? But if I show you every single day that I love you, then you really get away without even saying it,” Butler added.
On March 15, Rodgers publicly acknowledged his intention to play for the Jets next season.
"Since Friday, my intention was to play and play for the NY Jets," Rodgers said during an appearance on the Pat McAfee Show.
Last week, NFL Network's Ian Rapoport told McAfee that a trade centered around Rodgers may not be completed until the first day of the 2023 NFL Draft on April 27, which is "the only real deadline."
"I'm trying to look at where this goes and, you know, deadlines are always what drives these things. There is a real possibility this rolls right up to the draft cause that's the only deadline. It's about the 2023 draft picks and when you actually have to use them is the deadline," Rapoport said.
Rapoport said the two sides are likely continuing to discuss the compensation involved but he, personally, cannot confirm which side has the leverage with Rodgers publicly announcing his intention to play for the Jets next season and the Packers previously acknowledging their plan to move on to former first-round pick Jordan Love at quarterback.
"I don't see any point where they would just say, 'OK, fine, we have to do this deal' until late April."
Rodgers met with Jets owner Woody Johnson and a contingent of team representatives in California on March 7. 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).
Butler spent his entire 12-year NFL career with the Packers, which included winning a Super Bowl, as well as being selected as a four-time first-team All-Pro, four-time Pro Bowler, a member of the NFL 1990s All-Decade Team and Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame.
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