New York Jets general manager Darren Mougey made it clear that Aaron Rodgers was never going to be in his and new head coach Aaron Glenn’s equation moving forward.
“I’m not here to confirm or deny any rumors that happened during that process. I will say this: There was never an ultimatum or rules of engagement for Aaron to potentially join the Jets again,” Mougey said on Tuesday at the 2025 NFL Combine in Indianapolis (h/t SNY). “That never happened.”
Shortly after Mougey and Glenn were handed the reins, they alerted the 41-year-old Rodgers that his two-year stint with Gang Green would be coming to an end.
Per Mougey, Rodgers will “likely” be a post-June 1 cut, which saves the Jets nearly $10 million this year.
“[Glenn] and I had a lot of dialogue, a lot of conversations, a lot of good thoughts, and felt at the end of the day, it was the best thing for the Jets to go in a different direction at the quarterback position,” Mougey said. “Lot of respect for Aaron Rodgers as a player and person. First-ballot Hall of Famer. I wish him nothing but the best. But that was a decision we made, and we look forward to moving past that and into that next process of free agency and the draft.”
That next process includes finding another quarterback, which will be no easy task for a team that holds the No. 7 pick in the draft—likely too far down the board to acquire either of the top two passers, Shedeur Sanders or Cam Ward.
Free agency and the trade market will be their best options, even if it is just to acquire a bridge quarterback that can help establish a contender in 2025.
“We’re going to exhaust all options,” Mougey said. “There’s obviously a lot of intriguing prospects here at the combine. We’ll dive into that. There are some in free agency, and we’ll keep all options open.”
