One team hasn’t backed off on Aaron Rodgers after all

A team that was thought to have moved on from the idea of trading for Aaron Rodgers is apparently still very much in the running, according to NFL rumors.

Aaron Rodgers has emerged from the darkness, but left the NFL world in the dark about what his plans are moving forward. Will he retire? Will he request a trade? Will he move forward in Green Bay?

Or, could he choose the most destructive, chaotic option of all? A semi-retirement where he comes back in a few months to force the Packers’ hand, perhaps?

At this point, all options are on the table. As we wait to see what his decision is on coming back or not for 2023, we’re getting some NFL rumors on the teams that are expected to be possible trade partner fits for him.

The Raiders were thought to be out, but are still in wait-and-see on Aaron Rodgers trade

It was reported previously by Vic Tafur of The Athletic that the Las Vegas Raiders general manager Dave Ziegler and head coach Josh McDaniels were in agreement that Vegas wouldn’t pursue an Aaron Rodgers addition (subscription required) via a trade.

Now, we have some other information. Dan Graziano of ESPN said that the Raiders are still, ‘a team to watch’ in the Rodgers race (subscription required), if there is one at all.

It was surprising — but maybe not so much, considering the Raiders’ decision-making has been laughable at times — that the Raiders were reported to be out on Rodgers before the market even existed. A quarterback like that becomes available infrequently, and it does you no good to quit on the bartering before it’s even begun.

Leaving the discussions once they’ve started because the cost to get Rodgers is too high is completely fine. But to quit on them before they’ve even begun, what’s the point? You want to remain competitive and pursue all your options when building a team, especially considering the Raiders don’t have a starting quarterback right now.

It’s hard to believe all this conflicting information is a result of the Raiders playing their cards close to the chest or in a strategic way. More likely? They just have no idea what they’re doing post-Derek Carr.