Aaron Rodgers to the Patriots Would Be a Hilarious Twist

We still don't know what Aaron Rodgers is going to do in 2023. Signs point so some kind of announcement on Wednesday during an appearance on The Pat McAfee Show, but we have nothing concrete. While he has been closely connected to the New York Jets, a number of avenues appear possible. One that would be absolutely hilarious is the four-time NFL MVP ending up with the New England Patriots.

On Tuesday, reports suggested Aaron Rodgers gave the Jets a wish-list of free agents he'd like to play with. That group included Allen Lazard, Randall Cobb, Marcedes Lewis and Odell Beckham Jr.

The Jets got to work and have agreed to a deal with Lazard, handing him a four-year, $44 million contract. That has to be an enticement for the 39-year-old quarterback, as Lazard was his top target in 2022 and the two have spent five seasons together. That's probably not enough to get Rodgers to jump, but it's a good start for Gang Green.

So why would I throw the Patriots in the mix? Aside from some unsubstantiated rumors floating around, the Pats don't see all that thrilled with Mac Jones' development.. They also have a chunk of salary cap space they could use to sign Rodgers and some friends and, frankly, it would be hilarious for the Jets to go all-in to get a quarterback only to see him jump to a rival. Rodgers seems like the kind of guy who would relish playing for Bill Belichick. I'm not suggesting this move will or even could happen but, when it comes to Aaron Rodgers, I would rule nothing out.

The Patriots have around $30 million in cap space for 2023, and are roughly $165 million under the projected cap for 2024. They have no dead cap hits for 2024 and only have $16.1 million in salary commitments for 2025. That's a massive amount of space to make deals, especially if they sign guys for multiple years to spread their cap hits out.

Again, I have no evidence something like this will happen, I just think it would be the most entertaining outcome of this whole saga.