David Bakhtiari floats interesting possible Aaron Rodgers strategy for Packers

The stare down continues between the Packers and the Jets over Aaron Rodgers. One of his current (for now) teammates shared an interesting potential theory for resolving the situation on the Bussin’ With The Boys podcast.

“The Packers are rebuilding, whether you think so or not,” tackle David Bakhtiari said. “Could they be good? I don’t know. Could they be bad? Probably if you’re betting more people are gonna think they’re gonna be bad than good, right? Isn’t that fair to say? So then they’ll be like, ‘Well, we’re gonna suck anyways. We want what we want, and we’re not gonna bend to anyone. So we’ll just eat it. . . . We’ll pay you, we don’t care. If we’re gonna do it our way, it’s gonna be on our terms. If not, what are we gonna be, Super Bowl contenders anyway? So we’ll eat it, you can hang on the side. We’ll pay you your money, and then we’ll suck anyways, get the picks, as compared to dealing him for something that you shouldn’t have.”

The absence of an owner who would personally lose the $60 million Rodgers will be paid this year could make the outcome more palatable, since no one is actually losing the money — and given that the option bonus the Packers can exercise at any point between now and Week One will result in a much lower cap number for 2023.

Bakhtiari added that he doesn’t believe it will become that contentious. But he recognizes that the “keep Aaron and pay him to not play” is a third option worth at least watching, if the Jets draw a line in the sand that the Packers won’t cross.

And Bakhtiari made it clear that they wouldn’t keep Rodgers and both pay him and play him. Baktiari said that the Packers “gave the keys” to quarterback Jordan Love.

The thing that makes the theory interesting is that it’s coming from a current player. A key player. One of the players Rodgers has mentioned as players he’d like to keep playing with.

And maybe Rodgers eventually will. Bakhtiari repeatedly referred to the Packers as “they” not “we,” and when he later said he doesn’t want to be traded, his laugh was delivered in just the sort of way that invites speculation as to whether there’s some truth lurking at the heart of the supposed joke.

Again, it’s unlikely that the Packers would play hardball to the point that they pay Rodgers nearly $60 million to not play. The fact that the possibility has landed on Bakhtiari’s radar screen justifies putting it on ours, too.

David Bakhtiari floats interesting possible Aaron Rodgers strategy for Packers originally appeared on Pro Football Talk