Aaron Rodgers may now be a Pittsburgh Steeler, but he will forever be a Green Bay Packer.
Ahead of the 4-2 Steelers’ blockbuster Week 8 clash against his former team on Sunday Night Football, the 21-year NFL veteran revealed that he will return to Green Bay – who are off to a 4-1-1 start to the campaign – to retire as a Packer.
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Aaron Rodgers has revealed that he wants to retire as a Green Bay PackerCredit: Getty
Speaking to the media on Thursday, Rodgers – who was slated for unusual offseason workouts – made it very clear that when he finally calls time on his career, with the 40-year-old having previously admitted that he is “pretty sure” the 2025 season will be his last, he wants to return to the team where it all started.
“I was there for 18 years,” Rodgers said, reflecting on his time with the Wisconsin outfit. “Regardless of when I hang it up, that’s the bulk of my career. I’ll retire a Packer and see what happens after that.
“I’ve got a lot of love for the organization [and] my time there. They asked this week is it a revenge game or whatever. What do I got to be avenging here? They made me a ton of money.
“I grew up there, spent some of the best years of my life there. I’ve got nothing but love for the organization.”
In 18 years with the Packers, where he sat behind Hall of Fame icon Brett Favre in his first three seasons in the league, Rodgers would go on to become a superstar, being named the league MVP on four occasions, and earning 10 Pro Bowl honors.
Suiting up 230 times of his 254 career games so far in the Green and Gold, the five-time All-Pro quarterback completed 65.3 percent of his 7,660 pass attempts for 475 touchdowns to just 105 interceptions, and won the 2011 Super Bowl – against the Steelers – before departing from the team in 2023.
Despite ultimately deciding to leave Green Bay following the completion of a highly-publicized darkness retreat, in which he felt that communication issues had contributed to a breakdown in his relationship with the team, he showcased nothing but respect and love for his former team.
“It was such a tight-knit group for so long there,” Rodgers added.
“I outlasted most of them, but it’s fun, that’s why I feel so good about my time there because damn near everything great in my life is because of my football career, and my football career starts and will end one day with Green Bay.
“I’ve got a lot of love for those memories and a lot of great friends that I still carry with me to this day.”
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Rodgers was under center for the Packers for 18 seasons and won the 2011 Super BowlCredit: Getty
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Rodgers has exceeded expectations in the early weeks of the 2025 seasonCredit: Getty
Although Rodgers has stated that he doesn’t see the upcoming contest against the Packers in front of the Lambeau Field faithful as a ‘revenge game,’ Green Bay insider Peter Bukowski is far from convinced.
Might as well start this early: Yes Rodgers wanted to move on, but tried to paint the Packers as the villains for wanting to move on,” he posted to X (formerly Twitter). “Rodgers ABSOLUTELY views this as a revenge game. He has something to prove.”
Bukowski later doubled-down on his previous comments after receiving some backlash from Rodgers fans.
“All of a sudden, the Rodgers capers are mad at me today, when David Bakhtiari — one of Rodgers good friends — said more or less the exact same thing, while also saying Rodgers would say all the “right” things about how it’s just another game. Don’t be naive,” he fired.
Having drafted up to select former Utah State quarterback Jordan Love with their first-round pick in the 2020 draft while Rodgers was still at the helm, the respect between Love and Rodgers goes both ways.
In his media availability ahead of facing the AFC North juggernaut, 26-year-old Love spoke about his time working behind the future Hall of Famer as his backup.
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Love was Rodgers’ backup for three seasons from 2020-2023Credit: Getty
“He’s one of those guys that breaks all the rules,” Love said. “But at the same time it was cool for me to see some of that stuff.
“You’re taught your whole life how to play the quarterback position a certain way, and you see a guy kind of break some of those rules and make some of these passes … obviously some of it is just him being a freak, being able to do stuff other people can’t, very talented.
“But I think in the back of your head it makes you be like, ‘Man, I want to try some of this stuff.’”
“A-Rod was obviously at a different level, so it’s something I had to build up into. But it was cool to be able to watch him do some things, and it just gave me perspective on how to play the position and how to be able to handle a lot of different things.”
With both the Steelers and the Packers sitting atop their respective divisions, this fixture is certainly one that has fueled huge excitment from around the league.
But Rodgers, who is also played against his other former team in the New York Jets this season, winning 34-32 despite playing poorly – has made it clear that this game will be the one that means the most.
“This one would mean a lot more if it was in Lambeau,” Rodgers said, “just because of the affection I have for that place and that hallowed ground of Lambeau Field and all the amazing memories that I have there over the years.”
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