Aaron Rodgers explains why he took $35M pay cut

When Aaron Rodgers decided to join the New York Jets this offseason, it came with a significant pay cut. The former Green Bay Packers star took $35 million less than what he could’ve received, but he did so in hopes of winning another Super Bowl.

Speaking with NBC Sports’ Peter King, Rodgers explained his decision to take less money while playing for the Jets.

“What it comes down to it was … it was the right thing that made me feel best,” Rodgers said.

Rodgers said he wanted the Jets to know he was fully committed to the organization. Not only that, he wanted to team to understand that he was willing to do whatever was necessary to win another Super Bowl.

Even if it meant giving up quite a bit of cash.

“I thought it was important they knew how committed I was,” Rodgers told King. “And in my conversations with [G.M.] Joe [Douglas], he has made it very clear the vision for the football team.”

Rodgers said by leaving money on the table, it opened up the possibility for New York to land some high-profile players, if any became available.

“Big names move at the trade deadline now,” Rodgers said. “I wanted to make sure that if somebody valuable came available that we’d be able to get him.”

There are high expectations in New York for Rodgers and the Jets in 2023. It’ll be interesting to see if they live up to the hype.

Aaron Rodgers having ‘most fun’ in a long time

Rodgers has already enjoyed his time with his new team. During OTAs, the veteran quarterback says it’s been one of the most fun offseasons he’s had in quite some time.

“The last six weeks have been about the most fun I’ve had in a while,” Rodgers said, via USA TODAY’s Lorenzo Reyes. “It’s fun to come to work and be excited about what we’re doing.”

Just being part of OTAs was a sign that Rodgers might be enjoying his time a little more. He missed time during his previous few years with Green Bay.

“Yeah, I think it was good,” Rodgers said of being at OTAs. “I had originally planned on being back on the West Coast at least a week to be with my body work people and my trainers, but when I hurt my calf, it was best that I was here the entire time rehabbing and just being around the guys.

“It made for a lot of opportunities for some get-togethers in the city — obviously a Taylor Swift concert — team dinners, a lot of hangout time, so that was good. But the on-the-field stuff was really important to work through some of the adjustments and signals, being another voice in the room with Hack in the installs and QB room. It was a lot of fun, actually.”