As stated in this space often, the Packers have been bullish on Aaron Rodgers for a quite a while. This weekends dramatic extension of his contract, an extension worth close to 64M over the next six and one-half seasons with an even 20M guaranteed, is proof positive of that built-up confidence.
This extension was not about the only seven games that he started prior to signing it, games in which Aaron proved his readiness to be a top caliber quarterback and play through pain and injury to his shoulder. The Packers have been convinced about Aaron for the past three years.
During those years in Green Bay, perhaps the most asked question I received was Is Aaron Rodgers really going to be a solid heir to Brett Favre? The answer from all of us was always a resounding, Yes, he is.
As I have stated before, he has a big arm, uncanny intelligence, natural leadership skills and an ability to not take things too seriously, which has served him well this year.
He reminds me a lot of a former client and another former Favre backup, Matt Hasselbeck (a player that should be considered for MVP this year in light of how the Seahawks are doing without him).
Aaron prepared himself to be the starter for the Packers since 2006. Aaron endeared himself to his teammates and the front office with his meticulous preparation during the long winters of Green Bay.
Now he has been paid, and paid well. The Tony Romo and David Garrard deals were obvious guides to his compensation. A more important reference may have been future deals for players such as Eli Manning and Philip Rivers, deals that will be much bigger than this.
The Packers knew that whatever they paid now, unless there was a dramatic injury to come, they would be paying a lot more later. With the scarcity of quality quarterbacks to even come close to hitting the market, even waiting until the end of this season and Aaron having a full year left on his contract would have cost the Packers millions in total and guarantees.
Should Aaron have received this deal this early into his playing career? The same question could have been asked about the following quarterbacks before him: Rob Johnson with the Bills, Matt Schaub with the Texans, Tony Romo and David Garrard. The feeling from the teams was the same throughout this is our guy and the market will only go up.
The trend of deals being done earlier and earlier into a players career is a trend in all sports now. In baseball, the Rays extended Evan Longoria a week into his major league career! Though not as early, similar proactivity was exercised by the Rockies and Brewers, respectively, for Troy Tulewitski and Ryan Braun. And news this week that the Lakers have extended Andrew Bynum, their young center that hardly played last year, for the tune of 58M over four years! Again, the theme for all these teams was and is the same: it will only cost us more to wait.
Congrats to Aaron, a good friend over the last three years. My sense is he will be worth this deal and more.