The Green Bay Packers are still unsure on if Aaron Rodgers will continue to play with the franchise next season, but it's been claimed that their relationship is only heading in one "direction".
One of the stories of the off-season so far has been the unknown future of Rodgers, and he's made countless hints about what he might do ahead of the next campaign. Rodgers still has two years remaining on his bumper $150 million contract extension signed last March, but he's failed to rule out a trade elsewhere.
Unlike in previous years, it's been reported that the Packers aren't acting out of desperation to get the 39-year-old back, and would only wish to do so if he buys in to where they're heading as a franchise. That may not sit well with Rodgers, and ESPN reporter Jeff Darlington can only see it going one way.
For days and weeks, Rodgers has been the topic of conversation in the NFL. Fans are still unsure if he will retire, return to the Packers or trade elsewhere, and it's fair to say that it's getting frustrating for everyone involved.
The Packers especially may be losing their patience, as general manager Brian Gutekunst revealed at the NFL combine that they're yet to hear from him. Gutekunst has a clear direction he wants the Packers to go in, and if Rodgers can't accept that, it could be over.
"Publicly and privately the vibe is the same, and that is that no longer are the Packers going to simply kiss the ring of Aaron Rodgers and say 'we need you back, got to have you back'," said Darlington on ESPN. "It is no longer that tone.
"It is 'If you want to be a part of this organisation, you need to call us, you need to commit, you need to show us that's going to be the case'. That is a very different tone, and that is very problematic if you do want Aaron Rodgers back.
"We're talking about two egos here. One person who is a franchise quarterback and who believes he has done a great deal for this organisation, and another in a person who is overseeing this organisation who he believes is bigger than any one player.
"So unless one of these two sides can decide that 'we need to keep this going', then it feels heading in a very clear direction. That is the idea of considering Aaron Rodgers departs the Green Bay Packers."
