‘I don’t see any benefit… it’s a waste!’: Aaron Rodgers reveals he doesn’t want to play in any preseason games for the Packers… despite his new-look offense and a history of losing season openers!
- Aaron Rodgers thinks playing only one series in preseason is a waste of time
- Packers QB Rodgers has not played in a preseason game since the 2018 season
- Last season the Green Bay Packers lost 38-3 in their regular season opener
- Green Bay’s offense has multiple new players that still need to build chemistry
Like most NFL veterans Aaron Rodgers is not a fan of the preseason and he didn’t hold back when discussing it Tuesday.
‘I don’t see any benefit to it,’ Rodgers told reporters. ‘I definitely don’t see any benefit to playing one series. If we’re going to play, we should play and play a quarter, a couple of series, two to three series. Just suiting up for four plays, to me, is a waste.’
Rodgers, in fact, hasn’t taken a preseason snap since 2018. He was supposed to play during the 2019 preseason but the decision was scrapped due to poor field conditions.
Aaron Rodgers throws the ball during Green Bay Packers’ training camp practice last week
Packers head coach Matt LaFleur has already said that Rodgers will not play in the first preseason game against the San Francisco 49ers or in the second game against the New Orleans Saints. LaFleur did not rule Rodgers out for the final preseason game against Kansas City, however.
‘I think it’s kind of a no-win situation to the outside of the building. If somebody gets hurt [it’s], “I can’t believe they played our guys.” But if we go out and have a stinker it’s, “I can’t believe they didn’t play them”,’ Rodgers said.
‘You’ve just got to do what’s best for the squad, and Matt’s going to do that. He’s going to lean on the leaders of the football team and if he feels like we need to go out and play, we’ll go out and play. But I don’t want to just go out and play three plays. That, to me, is a waste of time.’
Rodgers flips head coach Matt LaFleur’s hat backwards on the sidelines during training camp
The Packers have made a trend of losing season openers of late – they lost last season’s regular season opener in an abysmal 38-3 blowout to the same Saints that Rodgers will sit out against in week two of the preseason.
Furthermore the Packers have undergone massive changes to their wide receiving core after trading star wide receiver Davante Adams to the Las Vegas Raiders.
To the surprise of many the Packers did not invest premium assets to replace Adams either. The team instead elected to sign journeyman wide receiver Sammy Watkins to a modest contract in free agency. They then followed this up by drafting receiver Christian Watson out of North Dakota State in the second round of the 2022 NFL draft and receiver Romeo Doubs out of Nevada in the fourth round.
Rodgers walks off field following win against Chicago Bears at Lambeau Field last season
Aside from all the new faces at receiver the Packers may have as three new starters on the offensive line week one.
The fact that both All-Pro left tackle David Bakhtiari and Pro Bowl guard Elgton Jenkins both continue to rehab knee injuries along with several players competing for the starting right tackle position has left Packer line looking very shaky in practice.
Rodgers might see only playing a couple of series as a waste of time but there is something to be said for building chemistry with your new teammates. Whether Rodgers and the Packer offense build that chemistry before the games actually matter remains to be seen.
Rodgers and running back Aaron Jones appear to share a laugh during training camp
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