What to Know
- Aaron Rodgers has a torn left Achilles tendon, according to a person familiar with the diagnosis, and the 39-year-old quarterback likely will miss the rest of the New York Jets’ season.
- He was previously the NFL's fourth-highest-paid player with an average annual salary of around $50 million, but dropped down to a tie for 12th at $37.5 million following the restructure over the summer
- Due to the injury, Rodgers will make $9,375,000 per snap
Aaron Rodgers has a torn left Achilles tendon, according to a person familiar with the diagnosis, and the 39-year-old quarterback likely will miss the rest of the New York Jets’ season.
The injury puts Rodgers' future beyond this season in jeopardy as well, as it is a very tough injury for athletes of any age to come back from, let alone a 39-year-old toward the end of a Hall of Fame career. But what isn't in jeopardy is the money Rodgers is still set to receive, as he has a whole lot of guaranteed money coming his way.
There was much to-do made about Rodgers' contract that was re-structured after he joined the Jets. Rodgers, who has racked up $306.6 million in career earnings, agreed to a three-year, $150.8 million deal with the Green Bay Packers in 2022. He was previously the NFL's fourth-highest-paid player with an average annual salary of around $50 million.
But then he dropped down to a tie for 12th at $37.5 million following the restructure over the summer.
The four-time NFL MVP agreed to a restructured two-year, $75 million deal with the Jets in July. The new contract saw him cough up around $35 million of the roughly $110 million in future guaranteed money he was previously owed.
So, why did Rodgers decide to take such a massive pay cut with his new team? According to him, "It was the right thing that made me feel best," Rodgers told NBC Sports' Peter King.
“I thought it was important they knew how committed I was. And in my conversations with [Jets general manager Joe Douglas], he has made it very clear the vision for the football team.
Feeling out of the loop? We'll catch you up on the Chicago news you need to know. Sign up for the weekly Chicago Catch-Up newsletter.
Rodgers will still earn that $37.5 million for his very brief time leading Gang Green's offense? Here's a breakdown of how much Rodgers will get paid this year for everything he did with the team during the season:
- In terms of actual game time, Rodgers played for a total of 1 minute and 34 seconds before the clock was stopped following his injury, or 94 seconds total. That means he will be paid about $399,000 per second of game time he saw, or nearly $24 million for that first minute alone.
- If the time he spent on the sideline before the Jets got their first possession counts, Rodgers will make just under $154,000 per second (150 of those seconds was spent on the sideline while the Bills were on offense).
- Per snap, Rodgers will make $9,375,000 before he was injured. The four snaps included a running play, an incomplete pass, a defensive holding call and a sack.
- Rodgers made just one official pass attempt before his injury, meaning he will earn $37.5 million for that one throw, which went incomplete. He did attempt another pass to Tyler Conklin, but the referees called a defensive holding penalty on the Bills, negating what would've been another incompletion.
- Rodgers was sacked for a loss of 10 yards. That means for every yard lost, Rodgers earned $3.75 million.
The Jets acquired Rodgers, along with a 2023 fifth-rounder, from the Packers in exchange for a 2023 second-rounder, a 2023 sixth-rounder and a conditional 2024 second-rounder that would have become a first if Rodgers had played 65 percent of the plays in 2023. The two teams also swapped 2023 first-rounders, which saw New York drop from No. 13 to No. 15.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
