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Aaron Rodgers says taking a massive pay cut with the New York Jets made him "feel the best." Last week, Rodgers restructured his deal that removed $33.7 million from his contract. Before reworking the deal, Rodgers was scheduled to earn just less than $110 million over the next two years.
Now, Rodgers' deal is a two-year, $75 million fully guaranteed deal. “What it comes down to it was … it was the right thing that made me feel best. I thought it was important they knew how committed I was. And in my conversations with [G.M.] Joe [Douglas], he has made it very clear the vision for the football team," Rodgers told Peter King of Pro Football Talk.
Rodgers was praised for putting the Jets first
When Rodgers was traded to the Jets, some wondered if the star quarterback would accept to rework his deal and give the Jets a chance to add more talent around him. A few months later, Rodgers gave an answer to that question.
Jets head coach Robert Saleh gave massive credit to Rodgers as that move allows the Jets to add more talent and also gives them a better cap flexibility. "I think it says a lot when the best player on your football team -- a Hall of Famer -- is willing to sacrifice something because he wants to win, which is ultimately what we're all here to do.
This was Aaron. Aaron wanted to do this. Yeah, there's money and fame and that good stuff, but at the end of the day, we're all happy when we win. For him to look at this organization, from the outside looking in, and feel like we're doing a lot of things the right way.
We brought in the right people, we brought in the right coaching staff, we brought in the right management. For him to take a shot on us, I think it speaks volumes. We're grateful for that," Saleh said.