Aaron Rodgers Takes $35M Pay Cut

[RiverDog]

I know I wasn't refering to your post but a later one in the thread. I kind of wish he would to save some face but I doubt he does.

Understood.

I actually think that Russell might follow suit and at least offer to re-structure his contract or indicate his willingness to do so. Russell is extremely image conscious, and giving back some money in order to help his team be more competitive would enhance is reputation as being team oriented. The problem is that doing it so close to Rodgers restructure would make it look a bit insincere, that he's simply keeping up with the Jones and trying to one-up Rodgers in the nice guy department.

 

[Ozzy]

Understood.

I actually think that Russell might follow suit and at least offer to re-structure his contract or indicate his willingness to do so. Russell is extremely image conscious, and giving back some money in order to help his team be more competitive would enhance is reputation as being team oriented. The problem is that doing it so close to Rodgers restructure would make it look a bit insincere, that he's simply keeping up with the Jones and trying to one-up Rodgers in the nice guy department.

Apologies for coming across as rudenwasjt my intention and good points

 

[RiverDog]

Apologies for coming across as rudenwasjt my intention and good points

No need for an apology. A lot of people, including Yours Truly, have taken cheap shots at Russell so it's only natural to assume that was my intention.

And in a related story, Justin Herbert just signed a 5 year, $262.5 million contract extension.

 

[Ozzy]

No need for an apology. A lot of people, including Yours Truly, have taken cheap shots at Russell so it's only natural to assume that was my intention.

And in a related story, Justin Herbert just signed a 5 year, $262.5 million contract extension.

But us eastsiders have to stick together against the massive west side of the state population in here!

 

[hawkfan68]

Understood.

I actually think that Russell might follow suit and at least offer to re-structure his contract or indicate his willingness to do so. Russell is extremely image conscious, and giving back some money in order to help his team be more competitive would enhance is reputation as being team oriented. The problem is that doing it so close to Rodgers restructure would make it look a bit insincere, that he's simply keeping up with the Jones and trying to one-up Rodgers in the nice guy department.

Russell has done this before while he was with the Seahawks to help them acquire Duane Brown in a trade -

Report: Seahawks restructure Russell Wilson's deal for Duane Brown cap space

The Seahawks wanted left tackle Duane Brown to improve their ability to protect quarterback Russell Wilson and Wilson reportedly did his part to make sure the deal sending Brown from Houston to Seattle could come to fruition.

www.nbcsports.com

And this - https://www.seattletimes.com/sports...-willing-to-restructure-his-deal-per-sources/

Russell Wilson willing to restructure Seahawks contract to help his team bring back key pieces

One reason why Tom Brady beat Russell Wilson in the Super Bowl was because he was willing to sacrifice part of his salary to help his team land other stars and boost his team's chances.

www.sportskeeda.com

 

[kidhawk]

Russell has done this before while he was with the Seahawks to help them acquire Duane Brown in a trade -

Report: Seahawks restructure Russell Wilson's deal for Duane Brown cap space

The Seahawks wanted left tackle Duane Brown to improve their ability to protect quarterback Russell Wilson and Wilson reportedly did his part to make sure the deal sending Brown from Houston to Seattle could come to fruition.

www.nbcsports.com

And these- https://www.seattletimes.com/sports...-willing-to-restructure-his-deal-per-sources/

Russell Wilson willing to restructure Seahawks contract to help his team bring back key pieces

One reason why Tom Brady beat Russell Wilson in the Super Bowl was because he was willing to sacrifice part of his salary to help his team land other stars and boost his team's chances.

www.sportskeeda.com

Restructuring into a signing bonus is helpful for a current year cap situation but it's a far cry from actually taking a pay cut.

 

[hawkfan68]

Restructuring into a signing bonus is helpful for a current year cap situation but it's a far cry from actually taking a pay cut.

Good point but it's still benefits the team in some fashion.

 

[RiverDog]

Russell has done this before while he was with the Seahawks to help them acquire Duane Brown in a trade -

Report: Seahawks restructure Russell Wilson's deal for Duane Brown cap space

The Seahawks wanted left tackle Duane Brown to improve their ability to protect quarterback Russell Wilson and Wilson reportedly did his part to make sure the deal sending Brown from Houston to Seattle could come to fruition.

www.nbcsports.com

And these- https://www.seattletimes.com/sports...-willing-to-restructure-his-deal-per-sources/

Russell Wilson willing to restructure Seahawks contract to help his team bring back key pieces

One reason why Tom Brady beat Russell Wilson in the Super Bowl was because he was willing to sacrifice part of his salary to help his team land other stars and boost his team's chances.

www.sportskeeda.com

All Wilson did was convert some of his base pay into bonus money, and they didn't even need his approval to do it. That differs dramatically from what Rodgers has done with the Jets in giving back $35M of salary:

Seahawks don’t need Russell Wilson’s approval to restructure his deal for more cap space

Read more at: https://www.thenewstribune.com/sports/nfl/seattle-seahawks/article249898073.html#storylink=cpy

The Seahawks converted millions of his (Wilson's) base pay for that year into bonus money it applied to the next two years of its salary cap. That allowed Seattle to take on Brown’s contract in that October 2017 trade.

As far as I know, what Rodgers has done is unprecedented. Tom Brady always took less money that he could have negotiated in order for the team to remain competitive, but I don't think that I've ever seen a player give back over 30% of their base salary. Rodgers deal went from 2 years/$110M to 2 years/$75M.

 

[kidhawk]

Good point but it's still benefits the team in some fashion.

It benefits the team in the short term, but hits the cap later, so it's just money shuffling. It probably benefited Wilson as much as anything given it was to sign a talented Left Tackle to help protect him.

Don't get me wrong, I loved Wilson's time here, and I don't begrudge any athlete not taking a paycut from a signed contract. Just trying to be clear that as of today, Wilson has never done this. The fact that Rodgers did it says a lot about where his head is at right now.

 

[RiverDog]

It benefits the team in the short term, but hits the cap later, so it's just money shuffling. It probably benefited Wilson as much as anything given it was to sign a talented Left Tackle to help protect him.

Don't get me wrong, I loved Wilson's time here, and I don't begrudge any athlete not taking a paycut from a signed contract. Just trying to be clear that as of today, Wilson has never done this. The fact that Rodgers did it says a lot about where his head is at right now.

I don't know if ANY player has ever done what Rodgers has done. His isn't just recharacterizing money from base salary to bonus for accounting purposes, it's actually giving it back, and a whole heck of a lot of it.

Comparing Wilson's restructuring of his deal, or any other player that restructured his contract, is apples and oranges compared to what Rodgers has done.

 

[hawkfan68]

I believe the Jets paid or are paying AR under the table. They are publicizing that AR is getting a reduction of his existing contract that the Jets received to make things seem rosy. I do think there is some shadiness involved (shadiness meaning we don't have a clear picture and may never have one, not anything illegal because it's not). To be clear, I'm not suggesting any wrongdoing here by any parties. Just maybe converting that money into an endorsement deal or something similar. For example, giving the money to State Farm so they can pay AR that money for endorsement, etc. AR gets his money and still looks good in the public eye. Just my opinion.

 

[RiverDog]

I believe the Jets paid or are paying AR under the table. They are publicizing that AR is getting a reduction of his existing contract that the Jets received to make things seem rosy. I do think there is some shadiness involved (shadiness meaning we don't have a clear picture and may never have one, not anything illegal because it's not). To be clear, I'm not suggesting any wrongdoing here by any parties. Just maybe converting that money into an endorsement deal or something similar. For example, giving the money to State Farm so they can pay AR that money for endorsement, etc. AR gets his money and still looks good in the public eye. Just my opinion.

Boy, that would be one helluva scandal if that's what's going on.

 

[hawkfan68]

Boy, that would be one helluva scandal if that's what's going on.

I can't put it past the Jets and Aaron Rodgers to do something like that. It may be easier to fathom if it were Jerry Jones or possibly the Patriots and Aaron Rodgers. An owner and a franchise that likes to walk the gray line (do things that may not seem ethical/moral in the spirit of sportsmanship but are not illegal) as much as possible.

 

[RiverDog]

I can't put it past the Jets and Aaron Rodgers to do something like that. It may be easier to fathom if it were Jerry Jones or possibly the Patriots and Aaron Rodgers. An owner and a franchise that likes to toe the gray line as much as possible.

Here's what Florio had to say:

Mike claimed, “Ben Fisher of Sports Business-Journal reported that the NFL has passed a law preventing team owners from giving players equity. In the aftermath of that report surfacing, I leant that when Aaron Rodgers was reconfiguring his contract with the Jets, he was trying to get equity in the franchise.”
Florio then went on to claim that the Jets could have easily dealt with the salary cap issue in the future, after loading their team up with superstars this year, and the year after that. This means that the veteran QB’s multi-million dollar gift to Jets owner Woody Johnson is a step towards Aaron buying a minority stake in the franchise after a few years, reckoned Florio.

"Philanthropic" Aaron Rodgers' $35,000,000 Gift to Woody Johnson Will Take the QB Closer to Jets' Ownership, Reckons NFL Insider Mike Florio

Mike Florio reckons that Aaron Rodgers opting for a pay cut is a strategic move made by the intelligent QB.

thesportsrush.com

So who knows. Rodgers has never been known as a philanthropist, so you have to figure that he's going to get that money back some way.

 

[hawkfan68]

Here's what Florio had to say:

Mike claimed, “Ben Fisher of Sports Business-Journal reported that the NFL has passed a law preventing team owners from giving players equity. In the aftermath of that report surfacing, I leant that when Aaron Rodgers was reconfiguring his contract with the Jets, he was trying to get equity in the franchise.”
Florio then went on to claim that the Jets could have easily dealt with the salary cap issue in the future, after loading their team up with superstars this year, and the year after that. This means that the veteran QB’s multi-million dollar gift to Jets owner Woody Johnson is a step towards Aaron buying a minority stake in the franchise after a few years, reckoned Florio.

"Philanthropic" Aaron Rodgers' $35,000,000 Gift to Woody Johnson Will Take the QB Closer to Jets' Ownership, Reckons NFL Insider Mike Florio

Mike Florio reckons that Aaron Rodgers opting for a pay cut is a strategic move made by the intelligent QB.

thesportsrush.com

So who knows. Rodgers has never been known as a philanthropist, so you have to figure that he's going to get that money back some way.

True. Nice find!

 

[Torc]

IIRC THE AARON ROGERS HATE HERE WAS CONCURRENT WITH THE NOW-EXTINCT RUSSELL WILSON LOVE AFFAIR. NOW THAT RW IS GONE, SHOULDNT THE HATE SUBSIDE SOME?

Personally I dislike Rodgers because he's an entitled prick who blames everyone around him including the refs, his teammates and team management for any failures. His post-loss press conferences are all about deflecting blame. I think he's overrated as a QB and I get really tired of the media portraying him as the most perfect QB ever to perfectly play the QB position.

Not everything has something to do with Russell Wilson.

 

[Weadoption]

^everything on .NET is about Russel Wilson or Trey Lance, directly or indirectly.