A lot has been made of Aaron Rodgers’ future over the past week. Two of the main men responsible for bringing Rodgers to New York have since been fired, bringing into question Rodgers’ future with the franchise. While Rodgers’ signed a lucrative three-year extension worth $112.5 million last offseason, the guaranteed money in the deal has already been paid out. However, don’t expect the Jets to move on quickly from this failed experiment.
Why Dead Cap Hit Could Keep Rodgers In NY For At Least One More Season
If New York decides to cut its veteran quarterback, the Jets would have to swallow a significant amount of dead money — not just on Rodgers’ deal — but also on many of the complementary pieces that they brought in to appease the future Hall of Famer. Without Rodgers on the roster, New York might also be enticed to let go of receivers Davante Adams and Allan Lazard.
Cutting Rodgers alone would already force the Jets to incur $49 million in dead cap money but that number would balloon to nearly $64 million when adding in dead cap numbers for Adams ($8.3 million) and Lazard ($6.5 million).
In order to avoid a dead cap hit, the Jets would have to wait until after the 2026 season is over to cut Rodgers. While that doesn’t seem likely, the team could save $9.5 million by cutting him after June 1st, 2025 and $21 million by cutting him after June 1st, 2026.
Jets’ First-Round Pick Could Tip Rodgers’ Future In NY
Instead, it seems more likely that New York will give the Aaron Rodgers experiment one more year to work itself out.
But the real indicator might be what the Jets’ new general manager does with the team’s 2025 first-round pick. Several NFL Draft experts are ready to pencil in Shedeur Sanders or another quarterback to the Jets in Round 1 but there is still a chance that the organization decides to go in a different direction.
For now though, Rodgers will remain the Jets’ starting quarterback through the remainder of the season, barring injury.
When asked if there has been any talk of replacing Rodgers under center, interim head coach Jeff Ulbrich told the Associated Press plainly, “There has not.”
“All I can say, and you’d have to ask Aaron if he’s fully healthy, but he’s better off today than he’s been as of late,” Ulbrich said. “So he’s definitely feeling healthier than he has probably for the past month. A healthy Aaron Rodgers is the Aaron Rodgers we all love.”
