Aaron Rodgers announced on Wednesday that this season will be his final year in the NFL.
Rodgers, who turns 43 in December, just inked a one-year deal with the Pittsburgh Steelers, who are wandering the quarterback desert without a true long-term plan.
And that’s only part of what makes Rodgers’ retirement announcement feel somewhat unlikely. He’s entering his 22nd season in the NFL, meaning that he’s been in the league half as long as he’s been alive.
A retirement announcement seems expected. He’s going to be 43, he’s played for two decades and has made over $400 million in NFL contracts and bonuses. But Rodgers feasts on attention. Over the last few seasons, his free agency decisions have been long, drawn out processes. But the NFL gives Rodgers that attention that he might not be able to find elsewhere.
There’s nothing left for Rodgers to accomplish on the field. He’s one of the all-time greats, especially in this generation of quarterbacks. But off the field, stepping away from being an NFL player will dim some of the limelight that Rodgers seemingly desperately craves.
Of course, he could become a television analyst or podcast personality. He’s already had standing segments on the “Pat McAfee Show” that received tremendous ratings. But they delivered big ratings because Rodgers was an active player who wasn’t shy about voicing his hesitations about conspiracy theories including his hesitancy to accept the COVID-19 vaccination to play in the NFL.
Without the status of an active NFL player, Rodgers’ whole shtick turns into just another random ex-athlete with bizarre takes and beliefs. There are plenty of other ex-athletes doing this already. Rodgers being an active player is what made his schtick so unique.
There’s been no shortage of controversies surrounding Rodgers over the last few seasons. At one point, he was a mysterious figure that had a falling out with his parents. In recent years, we’ve seen him show dishonesty to the media surrounding his COVID-19 vaccination status and yearly threats to retire from the NFL in order to host “Jeopardy!”.
The league will have a void without Rodgers in it. Love him or hate him, he’s a polarizing figure that won’t be the same once he retires, even if he maintains an active voice in football conversation. The NFL has plenty of weird players, and even a few weird quarterbacks, but none of them have the allure and intrigue that Rodgers was able to manufacture over the last two decades.
Maybe the retirement announcement was another exaggeration. This time next year, maybe he’s signing another one-year contract with a Pittsburgh team stuck in neutral. But if it is the end, what a crazy ride it has been.
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