During his final few years with the Packers, Aaron Rodgers was forced by Green Bay's front office to look over his shoulder.
Jordan Love was back there, waiting to take his job. Rodgers felt the threat and acted defensively, notoriously refusing to help Love adjust to the pro game before he left for New York.
Now, at 41 years old, Rodgers is staring Father Time in the face and has changed his tune accordingly. After an up-and-down 2024 season that has not been easy but has seen an uptick in production as of late, Rodgers is considering all options. He may not be back with the Jets in 2025, but if he is, he's willing to help them find their successor and help him acclimate to the pro game.
"When they drafted Jordan, I felt like I was one bad stretch from being benched -- and I won MVP a couple of years, so that's the way the league is," Rodgers said Wednesday, . "You have to prove you can play every single week and through stretches.
"So if [the Jets] asked me back and they drafted a guy, I'd mentor the hell out of him if I was playing and I'd try to play as well as I could to keep him on the bench."
The Jets are at a crossroads entering 2025. They've already fired their coach and general manager, so replacing those two is atop their offseason to-do list. That regime will also make a decision on Rodgers, which is difficult to predict at this point, especially in a year in which Rodgers hasn't looked like himself for most of the season.
It could be age finally catching up with him, or a dysfunctional offense -- which already saw its coordinator replaced during the season -- weighing him down. No one will know until Rodgers plays elsewhere, if at all, complicating the situation further.
Rodgers himself isn't sure he'll suit up anywhere in 2025, either.
"I'm going to take some time after the year -- unless I get released right away -- but I'll still take some time whether or not I want to play," he said. "But I'll take some time to get away from it, either way."
Financially, the hurdle won't be nearly as significant as it once was. Rodgers is aware of his age and lack of long-term value, adding he's "open to everything" regarding his contract.
He also knows he might not be a new regime's chosen quarterback, explaining why he's open to serving as a mentor. If anything, it adds value to his stock.
Rodgers could change that narrative, even if only slightly, by continuing to produce as he did in Week 15 (289 yards, three touchdowns). As of now, though, that's only hypothetical. Everything remains on the table for Rodgers, but it's a table he no longer commands.
