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Aaron Rodgers is the NFL’s first $50 million man.
The Green Bay Packers quarterback and four-time MVP has finally signed his new contract and it is a sight to behold for NFL salary cap aficionados and Packers fans who want their team to have operating room to compete for the Lombardi Trophy.
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It’s also pretty good for Rodgers’ bank account.
Quarterback Aaron Rodgers #12 of the Green Bay Packers gestures as he exits the field after losing the NFC Divisional Playoff game to the San Francisco 49ers at Lambeau Field on January 22, 2022 in Green Bay, Wisconsin. (Patrick McDermott/Getty Images)
Rodgers signed a four-year extension through 2026 but the final two years are essentially placeholder seasons. Those final two seasons merely serve to lower Rodgers’ cap numbers and no one expects Rodgers to ever see.
So the deal is basically a three-year contract.
And it is worth $150 million. All of it is guaranteed.
To understand the deal one must know that Rodgers was already signed for the 2022 season but his representatives and the Packers adjusted that year and added two more "real" seasons on it. So the deal is effectively a two-year extension.
Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers (12) scrambles during the first half of an NFL football game against the Detroit Lions, Sunday, Jan. 9, 2022, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Lon Horwedel)
The compensation:
2022: $42 million
2023: $59.515 million.
2024: $49.3 million
The total is $150 million plus.
The cap numbers are important because they largely determine what kind of team the Packers can put around Rodgers. These are the cap numbers:
2022: $28 million cap number. It was $46.1 million.
2023: $31.6 million cap number. It was $39.3 million.
2024: $40.7 million.
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Green Bay Packers wide receiver Allen Lazard is congratulated by quarterback Aaron Rodgers after a 29-yard pass for a touchdown during the first half of an NFL football game against the Detroit Lions, Sunday, Jan. 9, 2022, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Lon Horwedel)
What does this all mean? The Packers needed to do this to bring Rodgers back, and give themselves some operating room within the salary cap this year.
The Packers have actually made moves — including this Rodgers extension, a Preston Smith extension, and releasing offensive lineman Billy Turner and outside linebacker Za’Darius Smith — to save approximately $46 million in cap space.