Amid the long-cherished conclusion of one of the legendary quarterbacks, Aaron Rodgers, the Green Bay Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst revealed his communication gap with the team’s former star QB.
Aaron revealed his intention to bid adieu to the Packers team and get enrolled in the Jets roster this season after returning from the “Darkness Retreat”, albeit, the trade discussion between both teams hit a major impasse several times and fortunately, the trade saga finally reached a much-needed conclusion as the Green Bay Packers officially traded their star quarterback to the New York Jets for the No. 13, No. 42 (second round) and No. 207 (sixth round) picks in the 2023 NFL Draft on Monday.
What did the Packers GM say about the communication with Aaron Rodgers after trading him to the Jets?
USA Today’s reporter Ryan Wood disclosed that the Packers GM Brian Gutekunst stated he didn’t have any conversation with their long-time quarterback Aaron Rodgers shortly after the season ended in Green Bay.
Brian Gutekunst says he still has not spoken with Aaron Rodgers since shortly after the #Packers season ended.
— Ryan Wood (@ByRyanWood) April 24, 2023
However, it is not the first time Gutekunst raised the communication issue with A-Rod as he earlier opened up at the NFL’s annual league meetings in Arizona about the ongoing trade conditions of the ex-Packers QB citing their inability to reach him.
“After the season, we had a good conversation and we were going to have some follow-up conversations. And our inability to reach him or for him to respond in any way, I think at that point, I had to do my job and reach out, understanding that a trade could be possible and see(ing) who was interested”, the GM stated.
Brian also mentioned the “unsuccessful” attempts to reach the four-time MVP many times this off-season and stated that he contacted the QB’s representatives to discuss the matter, however, they notified him the veteran star was looking forward to being traded to the Jets.
“I was really looking forward to the conversations with Aaron to see how he fit into that. Those never transpired. So there came a time where we had to make some decisions, so we went through his representatives to try to talk to him [about] where were we going with our team. At that point, they informed us that he would like to be traded to the Jets”, he added.
However, Gutekunst didn’t halt back from praising the 18-year NFL veteran as he stepped to the podium inside Lambeau Field on Monday.
“I have so much respect for Aaron, not only the person but the player that he is. There’s so much gratitude in what he’s done for this organization”, he stated.
With the trade of Davante Adams to the Raiders and now Rodgers to the Jets, Brian traded away both parts of the NFL’s best quarterback-wide receiver tandem in back-to-back offseasons.
The Packers team is surely going to witness a major shift in the team’s performance after the departure of 10-time Pro Bowler and fans will eagerly await to see if any other promising player can take over his place and lead the team to get crowned in the league.
