Aaron Rodgers: Tom Brady hopes Green Bay Packers quarterback doesn’t retire as he plans ‘darkness retreat’ break

Tom Brady on Super Bowl LVII: “I felt Jalen [Hurts] played incredible… Patrick [Mahomes] played really clutch when he had to. And it was a very fitting end to a great season. They played really one of the great games all season. It was really fun to watch”

Tom Brady, the recently-retired seven-time Super Bowl winning quarterback, hopes Green Bay Packers QB Aaron Rodgers doesn’t join him in retirement any time soon, hailing the 39-year-old as “one of the greats”.

Rodgers is planning to embark on a four-day ‘darkness retreat’, this offseason, with the veteran quarterback telling The Pat McAfee Show that he hoped the excursion would help to provide clarity on his future, including retirement.

“It’s an opportunity to do a little self-reflection in some isolation and after that, I feel like I’ll be a lot closer to that final, final decision,” Rodgers said.

On the latest episode of his ‘Let’s Go!’ podcast, Brady said he hopes Rodgers decides to continue playing – be that in Green Bay or elsewhere.

“You know what, I hope he doesn’t retire,” Brady said. “I think the league needs good quarterbacks, and he’s one of the greats.

“If he retires, it’ll be a sad day for the league.”

As for Rodgers’ planned ‘darkness retreat’, Brady said: “Everyone has their different processes they go through. And you know what, I think we all need to get off our phone a little bit more. I think we all need to get away from the TV a little bit more.

“I think we all need a little more nature and a little more silence and a little more peace.

“And however he’s going about it, good for him. Everyone’s got their unique way to process the season. It’s very intense for all of us, and everyone gets to choose what they want to do.”

Rodgers is also currently subject to numerous trade rumours, with ESPN reporting on Sunday that the New York Jets have expressed an interest, and that the Packers are open to moving on from their 15-year starter.

Financial reasons are said to be the major reason behind a potential trade of Rodgers, with Green Bay projected to be $16m over next season’s salary cap. He is due $59.5m in guaranteed money in 2023 and $49.25m in 2024.

Rodgers told McAfee last month that he was “open to all honest and direct conversations” with the Packers. He added that a trade “wouldn’t offend me, and it wouldn’t make me feel like a victim”.

Rodgers was named the NFL’s MVP in both 2020 and 2021, but he endured one of the worst seasons of his career in 2022, completing 64.6 per cent of his passes for 3,695 yards and 26 touchdowns, while tossing 12 interceptions (his highest mark since 2010).

Brady disputes that narrative, however. “Certainly from the standpoint of him leaving the game the way that he’s playing, he broke his thumb this year and still played tremendous,” he said. “And you could see as he got healthy throughout the year how incredibly talented he is.

“I hope the good players keep playing. That’s what my hope is. That’s what I tried to do.

“And now you hope that the next generation does that and I hope they have the tools necessary to do that.”

Speaking of that next generation, Brady also offered his thoughts on Sunday’s epic Super Bowl LVII matchup between the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles which featured two of the best young quarterbacks in the game.

The 27-year-old Patrick Mahomes was named Super Bowl MVP for a second time as he defied an ankle injury to lead the Chiefs from behind to a 38-25 win. Eagles QB Jalen Hurts, appearing in his first Super Bowl aged 24, also put in a stellar performance, throwing for over 300 yards and a touchdown, while adding 70 yards and three scores on the ground.

“I felt Jalen played incredible,” Brady said. “Patrick played really clutch when he had to. And it was a very fitting end to a great season.

“The two best teams throughout the course of the year were in the Super Bowl, and they played really one of the great games all season. So it was really fun to watch.”

He added: “I hope these other guys like Patrick can play a long time, and Jalen can play a long time. And Josh [Allen] and Joe Burrow, these tremendous players that bring so much.

“That’s why we watch – not because of the colour of the jerseys, because of the players in the jerseys.”