The date that many NFL fans, specifically those of the Denver Broncos continue to talk about, June 1, is quickly approaching.
The reason for that is simple. By waiting until after June 1, the Green Bay Packers, a team already strapped by the salary cap, can save a lot of money if the decision is to trade star quarterback Aaron Rodgers.
The Packers are certainly caught in a pickle. The feud between Rodgers and the front office has been made very public and though many members of the NFL media seemed to be downplaying their sour relationship and don’t believe Rodgers is going anywhere, the team does have some big decisions to make.
Who knows, maybe they’ll convince the Broncos to take Love instead?
Rodgers is 37 years old and the team did draft Jordan Love in the first round last year. It would make sense to move one of those guys this year, as it seems highly unlikely that the Packers would just keep going with Rodgers and a former first-round pick just sitting on the bench for the next three seasons or more.
Of course, the Broncos are the team that has been most connected to Rodgers and the trade rumors have been swirling since the start of the NFL Draft.
If the Broncos and Packers were to make a deal, what would the Packers be looking to get back? Here are some ideas, and a package for the reigning league MVP would likely include most or even all of these things.
One of the quarterbacks
The Packers would want to get a quarterback in return for the one they were giving up, either Drew Lock or Teddy Bridgewater.
If Rodgers is traded, the Packers would turn to Love as the starter but the only other quarterbacks on the roster are Blake Bortles and Kurt Benkert. Both Lock and Bridgewater would be major upgrades over them and they would be seen as a more suitable backup.
Bridgewater would probably make more sense to go over in the deal, giving Love an experienced veteran to learn from going forward. It would also give the Packers a capable option should Love falter.
Lock would then become the backup in Denver, getting a chance to gain knowledge from one of the best quarterbacks in NFL history.
Jerry Jeudy or Noah Fant
One of the reasons it seems Rodgers has become so unhappy in Green Bay is because of the lack of options he has on offense. The team does have Davante Adams, but there isn’t much else in the passing game.
The Broncos have a treasure trove of young options in that department and it is likely that Green Bay would ask for either Jerry Jeudy, Noah Fant or K.J. Hamler in this trade package. There is a chance that they would settle for Tim Patrick if the Broncos provided enough options elsewhere in the deal.
It would be tough to lose one of these guys, but when you are getting an all-time great player, you have to expect to give up a lot.
If the Broncos could manage to give away Hamler in the deal rather than Jeudy or Fant, that would be preferable. Hamler still has a chance to be a great NFL player, but the other two have a much higher ceiling and could be Pro Bowlers with Rodgers throwing them the ball.
The options in the receiving game are likely what helps attract Rodgers to the Broncos as well, so you don’t want to get rid of too much here.
Bradley Chubb
Many fans would hate to see this happen, but if you think about potential trade scenarios, the Packers are going to look to get back as much as possible, so they are going to target the best players on the roster.
Bradley Chubb is one of those guys.
He’s much younger than Von Miller and is coming off of a Pro-Bowl season. Paired with Za’Darius Smith on the outside, Chubb could help make the Packers’ defense much scarier.
This would be disappointing to see because when the Broncos drafted Chubb, the idea was for him to create that scary combination with Miller. Because of injuries to both players, that just has not happened and they have hardly been on the field together at all.
But if the Packers are giving up the best player on their team, you can bet they will want at least one top-five player from the other team and Chubb, with his age and potential production down the road, makes plenty of sense for a team looking to deal.
Multiple first-round picks
When you consider what the Los Angeles Rams gave up to get Matthew Stafford or what the San Francisco 49ers dealt to be able to move up in the draft and select Trey Lance, you know it’s going to be a steep price to get Rodgers.
With that said, you can bet on the Packers asking for a minimum of two future first-round picks from the Broncos and possibly some other picks as well.
It’s almost certain that the Packers don’t want to trade Rodgers, but if the organization goes that route, it will look to keep the potential Super Bowl window open even without him. It is not the kind of thing that will lead to a fire sale in Green Bay, which will have to believe it is still a contender with Love at the helm.
This is just the business of today’s NFL. If a team wants a player like Rodgers, it better be coming with a king’s ransom to get him.
The Rams gave away two first-round picks, a third-round pick and Jared Goff for Stafford. The 49ers traded the Miami Dolphins two future first-rounders and a third-round choice all to move up just nine spots in the draft.
With respect to Stafford and Lance, they are not Rodgers.
Is Rodgers worth all of this?
If this trade were to go down after June 1, the Broncos are going to pay dearly. Here is what a potential swap could look like.
Seeing it in black and white like that, how does it really look? Most Broncos fans are going to be on board with that, especially with Hamler as part of the deal. But what if Hamler is taken out and the name there is that of Jeudy or Fant? Still worth it?
It’s definitely an interesting debate.
Rodgers is going to go down as one of the best quarterbacks to ever play the game and even at 37 years old, still has great skills. After all, he won the league’s MVP award last season.
The Broncos are a Super-Bowl contender with Rodgers on the roster, even if the team gives up everything in the package above. The same can probably not be said with Lock or Bridgewater running the show, at least not as of this moment.
Again, many are starting to be of the belief that Rodgers will not go anywhere, that he and the Packers will smooth things over and make one more push to get the Lombardi Trophy back in the land of the Cheeseheads.
But if an accord is struck, this is exactly what it could look like.