Aaron Rodgers' confirmation that this is his last season allows him the farewell tour his career deserves
Aaron Rodgers said Wednesday that this will be his final NFL season. It’s OK to be skeptical. Rodgers has teased retirement before. Even last year he said he was “pretty sure” 2025 would be his last season, he had a solid season for the Pittsburgh Steelers and decided (eventually) to come back for another season. But now he insists this will be his last season. “Yes. This is it,” Rodgers told the Pittsburgh media . Plenty of NFL fans grown weary of Rodgers, his seemingly endless dance with retirement, and other views that have rubbed people the wrong way. But Wednesday’s proclamation, which didn’t leave any ambiguity, allows everyone to take a step back from the sideshows and give Rodgers his retirement tour. He has undoubtedly earned it. We’ll have to see if NFL fans agree. No matter what anyone wants to say about Rodgers, he is one of the best players in NFL history. It’s even OK to argue he’s No. 1 on that list. Rodgers is tied with Lamar Jackson for the best career passer rating in NFL history among qualified quarterbacks. He has four NFL MVPs, and only Peyton Manning has more. He won a Super Bowl at the end of the 2010 season and his 2011 season, with 45 touchdowns and six interceptions, might be the best season a quarterback has ever had. But it was more than just the numbers. Rodgers made throws that no other quarterback has made before or since . He was the perfect package of unique arm talent, knowledge of the game and athleticism, at least in his prime. The stats are unbelievable. Actually watching Rodgers compile them was even more impressive. Tom Brady won more rings, Manning won more MVPs, Patrick Mahomes has done some of both at a young age, but the most physically gifted quarterback ever might be Rodgers. But when it comes to how Rodgers is perceived, it’s complicated. It has been for a while. Rodgers and LeBron James have plenty in common. Neither one is considered the consensus GOAT in their sport, though each has a great argument for it. They’ve been performing at a prime level far longer than almost everyone else who has ever played their sport. And by 2026, plenty of fans are ready for them go. Any athlete that sticks around and wins a lot will eventually wear out their welcome, especially in the social media era. It’s hard to have a perfect approval rating. Like James, Rodgers hasn’t been shy about his political views. People have gotten angry at news outside of the games, whether it was James orchestrating his son being drafted by the Lakers or Rodgers’ “immunized” comment in 2021 or salacious stories about Rodgers’ rifts with his family. It’s almost inevitable that great athletes will collect critics when they’ve been in an extreme spotlight as long as Rodgers and James have. The late Ted Thompson, who drafted Rodgers when he was Green Bay Packers GM, famously said that Rodgers was a “complicated fella.” It’s a quote that sums up Rodgers and his legacy. The “will he or won’t he” drama the past few years regarding retirement hasn’t helped (much like “The Decision” forever turned people off to James). This time around, Rodgers said “there was some doubt for sure” over whether he’d return, but after conversations with his wife and new Steelers coach Mike McCarthy, he came around to coming back for this season. One final season. So he says now. Week 16 will be Rodgers’ final home game, though Steelers fans don’t have the long-term connection with him like Packers fans do. Week 18 at Baltimore will be Rodgers’ final regular-season game. We’ll see if Pittsburgh makes it back to the playoffs to extend Rodgers’ career beyond that. Based on Rodgers’ career, which will span 23 seasons, it should be a celebration each week as one of the truly great players in NFL history nears the finish line. If only it were that simple
