Aaron Rodgers is now highest-paid player in NFL history after record-breaking deal

Aaron Rodgers is going to stay with the Green Bay Packers for a while longer. And his contract might be the largest the NFL sees for a while.

NFL Network’s James Jones, a former teammate of Rodgers with the Packers, said a deal between the Packers and Rodgers has been agreed upon and it’s for four years, $134 million with more than $100 million in guarantees. Rodgers is now the highest-paid player, in terms of annual average, in NFL history.

Rodgers told NFL Network back in July that Jones would have the scoop on his extension.

The total value of the deal could reach $138 million with some escalators, NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo said. Rodgers will get a whopping $80 million before next March, according to Garafolo via Jones. Garafolo added that Rodgers’ $57.5 million signing bonus is the largest in league history.

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Since Rodgers will turn 35 in December, it seems like a good bet that the deal will keep Rodgers in Green Bay until he retires.

Aaron Rodgers’ 2013 deal was outdated

Rodgers signed his last historic extension in 2013, but was outdated in 2018. The market for quarterbacks went up, and Rodgers’ average of $22 million per season was 10th among quarterbacks. He ranked behind Washington’s Alex Smith and Baltimore’s Joe Flacco.

The Packers and Rodgers knew that needed to be adjusted. Rodgers is one of the best quarterbacks in NFL history, a two-time MVP and Super Bowl champion. But with any deal this large, it was going to be complicated. That’s why the Packers were talking about it all offseason without it getting done.

Now the Packers and Rodgers can go into the regular season without it being an issue.

Rodgers resets the bar for quarterback salary

Recent quarterback deals probably added layers to negotiations. Jimmy Garoppolo got $27.5 million from the San Francisco 49ers after starting five games for them. The Minnesota Vikings gave Kirk Cousins $28 million a year and it was all guaranteed. Matt Ryan of the Atlanta Falcons set a new bar at $30 million per season.

The $33.5 million in new money per year, per Jones’ report, pushes him significantly past Ryan for the largest annual deal in NFL history. And it could reach $34.5 million if Rodgers hits those escalators. It will probably be a while before another player surpasses that.

While the Packers and Rodgers had some differences this offseason, after the team changed quarterbacks coaches and cut receiver Jordy Nelson, there was little real concern that a deal wouldn’t get done. The Packers weren’t going to let Rodgers go, even if it meant handing him the biggest deal the NFL has ever seen.

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Frank Schwab is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at shutdown.corner@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
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