Mr. Rodgers Neighborhood Again
Rodgers arrives in Green Bay for start of training camp
GREEN BAY, Wis. — Aaron Rodgers has made it to Green Bay on the eve of the Packers’ first training-camp workout.
Rodgers was seen arriving at Lambeau Field on Tuesday morning, the day after NFL Network and ESPN reported the reigning MVP was closing in on a deal that would keep him with the Packers this season. The Packers later tweeted a photo of Rodgers at Lambeau Field — wearing oversize sunglasses and a novelty T-shirt referencing “The Office.”
The Packers open training camp today. Under terms of the collective bargaining agreement, Rodgers would have been subject to a $50,000 fine for every day he held out during camp.
Rodgers didn’t participate in organized team activities this spring — a change from his usual offseason routine — and skipped the Packers’ mandatory minicamp.
His future with the Packers had seemed tenuous after ESPN reported in the hours leading up to the draft that he didn’t want to return to Green Bay. Rodgers has spent his entire career with the Packers, who selected him with the 24th overall pick in the 2005 draft.
When the NFL’S only publicly owned team held its shareholders meeting Monday, Packers president/ceo Mark Murphy said he was hopeful the two sides could resolve their differences and added that they’d been “in constant communication.”
“We want him back,” Murphy told the 3,900 shareholders who gathered at Lambeau Field. “We’re committed to him for 2021 and beyond. He’s our leader. We’re looking forward to winning another Super Bowl with him.”