Packers: What Does the Jordan Love Pick Mean For Aaron Rodgers?

With the selection of QB Jordan Love in the first round, what does this mean for Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers moving forward?

Prior to the first round of the NFL Draft kicking off on Thursday night, we had heard rumblings that the Green Bay Packers were looking to trade up from pick 30. Many – including myself – speculated that this meant that Brian Gutekunst was going to make a move for Justin Jefferson or one of the other top-3 receivers if they fell into the high-teens or low-twenties range.

However, as we all saw, that wasn’t the case. Instead, the Packers sent picks 30 and 136 to the Miami Dolphins for the 26th selection and they took a chance on Jordan Love, the polarizing quarterback from Utah State.

And just as the Green Bay Packers selected Aaron Rodgers in round one of the 2005 NFL Draft while Brett Favre was still at the helm, in a way, history repeats itself with the addition of Love. So now the million-dollar question is, what does this mean for Aaron Rodgers moving forward?

Well, in the short-term, not a whole lot. While Love has very good size, a strong-arm, and can make just about any throw on the field, he is certainly not ready to be an NFL starter or to even push Rodgers for the starting job right now in Green Bay.

With questionable decision-making at times and accuracy issues, Love needs time as a backup to learn and develop.

So with that answered, another question that arises is that since Rodgers’ job is not in jeopardy in the short-term, when could the Green Bay Packers move on from him in favor of Love?

To answer that we have to have an understanding of what Rodgers’ contract situation is. Below you will find the details of his deal from Over The Cap.

Alright, now let’s break this down. As you can see in 2020 if the Packers were to move on from Rodgers they would lose $29,506,000 in cap space. In other words, that isn’t happening, nor should it. Then in 2021, if Green Bay were to cut or trade Rodgers, they could create $4,796,000 in cap space. However, with a dead cap hit of $31,556,000 they aren’t likely at all to move on from him at that point either.

The first year where it becomes a real possibility is in 2022. That season Rodgers comes with a cap hit of $39,852,000 and a dead cap hit of $17,204,000. Thus saving Green Bay $22,648,000 in cap space, which is certainly a significant amount.

Although Love isn’t ready to be a starter yet, and Rodgers’ contract has him in Green Bay for at least two more seasons with a possibility of four, ultimately this all comes down to what level Rodgers is playing at in 2022 and 2023.

If he continues to be one of the better quarterbacks in the NFL, then it’s hard to envision a world where Green Bay moves on from him. Even if Loves’ rookie deal – four years with a team option for a fifth – is coming close to an end.

On the flip side, Gutekunst now has a transition plan in place. So if Green Bay does need to move on from Rodgers in two or three years, they have someone to lean on, rather than scrambling to find a new starting quarterback at the last-minute. Which is what we see the bad NFL teams do over and over.

So with all of that said, Aaron Rodgers is the starting quarterback of the Green Bay Packers for the foreseeable future. And even though he isn’t in his prime anymore, at this point, there isn’t a reason to think that he can’t play out the remaining four years of his contract here. However, if things do go south, Green Bay does have a plan in place.

But for now, Love has to develop and Rodgers will hopefully bring the Lombardi Trophy back home.