Aaron Rodgers is too old to suffer from any teenage angst.
Rodgers, 41, cracked a timely joke Monday on “The Pat McAfee Show” that his future with the Jets could be decided by owner Woody Johnson’s 18-year-old son Brick, whose influence over his father and the franchise was at the center of a controversial report last week by The Athletic.
McAfee was the one who first mentioned Brick Johnson in jest, posing a scenario where the heir informs Rodgers — the oldest active player in the NFL — that he is getting cut.
“There’s a first time for everything and there’s been a few of those this year — first time in 20 years,” Rodgers said. “I’ve never been released before. Being released would be a first. Being released by a teenager would also be a first. Hey, you know, I’m open to everything. I find the comedy in all of it. If that happens, hey, it’s a great story.”
Rodgers also reiterated last week’s comments that he is open to taking a pay cut to stay with the Jets and mentoring a first-round draft pick quarterback who will succeed him — like he did with the Packers’ Jordan Love before he was traded to the Jets.
Of course, all of those scenarios — including restructuring his $35 option bonus and $2.5 million salary in 2025 — are contingent on Rodgers deciding not to retire, which remains a possibility.
“They haven’t decided — or maybe they have but haven’t told me — what their plans are moving forward,” Rodgers said. “I’m guessing they are going to want to get a GM in here in the next few weeks and obviously let the GM be a part of making the coaching selection. I think there’s a world where they just say, ‘Thank you. We’re going to go in a different direction’ on Jan. 6. I think there’s also a possibility we are going to wait and see who the new staff is.”
It’s notable that Rodgers has used the same hypothetical where he gets released the day after the season finale — Dolphins at Jets on Jan. 5 — twice in the last week.
It seems more plausible that the next regime would want to make the call on the future Hall of Famer.
Whether Rodgers remains with the Jets or not, he wants to see a more ʙuттoned-up organization in the future.
“What’s best for the Jets is not having these types of leaks all the time,” Rodgers said. “When that gets figured out, it will be a little bit easier to win. That doesn’t have a direct impact on the players on the field. But it has an impact on the culture, chemistry and overall energy of the building. That’s what needs to get better.”