Ever since the Packers drafted Jordan Love, it has seemed like Aaron Rodgers has been on the clock. First round picks should play, after all, and one of the primary benefits of having a rookie quarterback, in particular, is that he offers a very cheap contract relative to the rest of the market at his position.

Rodgers story was at — or near — its end. Like Brett Favre before him, the Packers had decided that their aging quarterback needed to be on something resembling a schedule, and they’d move on when they determined that Love was ready.

To his credit early on, Rodgers took an opposite approach to his successor. While Favre declared that it was not his job to get Aaron Rodgers ready (and it wasn’t), Rodgers has been fairly open about his support for Love from day one, even getting in touch shortly after the Packers selected him in 2020. Rodgers, apparently, was determined to walk a different path than Favre.

Until he wasn’t. Though he again reached out to Love, Rodgers spent a large part of last offseason embroiled in Favre-ian machinations related either to retirement or an exit from Green Bay via trade. Brian Gutekunst made it plain that the latter wouldn’t be an option, and Rodgers decided against calling it quits shortly before the start of training camp.

And now, after almost two months of will he/won’t he speculation, Rodgers is officially back with the Packers. His contract is now signed, his future assured, and the threat of Love all but officially ended.

What do we make of this? What should we make of this? What did we learn?

For some, Rodgers’ reputation is forever tarnished. Whether it’s the retirement waffling, his overt deception in the media, or just general fatigue with his constant efforts to seem like he’s the smartest person in whatever room he happens to be in, I couldn’t blame anybody who’s fed up. If you wanted to see the future beyond Rodgers, whatever that looked like, you weren’t alone. 

But even for the most stringent anti-Rodgers person, I’d argue there should be another side of this discussion. For all his faults — and they are very real, though your perception of them may vary — with this extension, the Packers have done something pretty rare: they’ve made it certain that one of the very best players in the history of the franchise will, in all likelihood, only ever play for the Packers. No matter what comes next, Rodgers won’t end up like Brett Favre, Johnny Unitas, Joe Namath, or even Tom Brady. He’ll be with the team where it all started for good, or what amounts to it.

We live in an era of unprecedented player movement. Players are more aware than ever of their value relative to the market, and they’re more willing than ever to do whatever it takes to secure that value. Teams, too, seem more willing than ever to accommodate those requests. The days of fears over “ruining the cap” for half a decade are gone, if they ever should have existed at all.

For a time, Rodgers seemed willing to walk that path. He pushed the Packers to commit or move him, and they’ve answered his request. Rodgers will be with the Packers for years to come, aging into his 40s as the Packers’ starting quarterback.

I don’t know what that does for Rodgers’ legacy. For a lot of fans, it may not change anything at all. But no matter what his legacy ends up being, its final chapters will be written with the Packers. That’s worth celebrating.