Aaron Rodgers signed to five-year, $110 million contract extension

Aaron Rodgers is now the highest-paid player in the NFL as of this afternoon.

Raymond T. Rivard photograph

The much-anticipated contract extension signing of Aaron Rodgers became reality this afternoon when the Green Bay Packers announced via a press release issued at 3:45 p.m. that they had come to an agreement with their franchise quarterback.

Rodgers is reported to have signed a five-year, $110 million deal that will keep him in Green and Gold through the prime of his career. He will be 36 when this deal expires – it also provides him a contract that is the most paid to an NFL player. The $22 million per year eclipses the deal that Baltimore Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco signed a couple of months ago – that deal averaged out to just more than $20 million per year.

Rodgers was expected to give a press release at 4:30 this afternoon.

The signing on the afternoon of the second day of the NFL Draft will certainly become the story of the day, but the timing of the signing also underscores the Packers Way – playing down a signing that will make their quarterback the richest man in the NFL on the same day that Packers fans, coaches and administrators are focused on the newest additions to the team from the college ranks.

No contract numbers have yet been released, nor was there a number of years included in the announcement from the Packers PR department.

Here’s what Adam Schefter of ESPN tweeted a few minutes ago:

The press release included statistics about the Packers quarterback and the obligatory comments from Thompson and Packers head coach Mike McCarthy.

The following is the Packers official press release on the signing:

PACKERS SIGN QB RODGERS TO CONTRACT EXTENSION

The Green Bay Packers have signed QB Aaron Rodgers to a contract extension. The signing was announced Friday by Ted Thompson, Executive Vice President, General Manager and Director of Football Operations.

Rodgers, who was drafted by the Packers in the first round (No. 24 overall) in 2005, ranks No. 1 in NFL history (min. 1,500 attempts) with a career passer rating of 104.9. He also ranks No. 1 in league history in career INT percentage (1.73) and TD/INT ratio (3.72) and No. 2 in career completion percentage (65.7). For his career, Rodgers has completed 1,752 of 2,665 passes for 21,661 yards and 171 TDs with 46 INTs.

“Aaron is a true professional and a special player,” Thompson said. “He works hard, is humble, and is focused on his actions, on and off the field. He is an excellent teammate and pushes himself and others to be the very best. We are happy to reach an agreement to extend his career with the Packers.”

Rodgers posted 21,332 passing yards from 2008-12, the most in NFL history by a quarterback in h

is first five seasons as a starter. In 78 career regular-season starts, he has recorded 28 games with 300-plus passing yards, 43 without an interception and 46 with a 100-plus passer rating. Rodgers was selected to the Pro Bowl three of the past four seasons (2009, 2011-12) and was named the starting quarterback for the NFC squad each of the past two seasons.

“An exciting day for our football program,” Head Coach Mike McCarthy said. “Aaron is an excellent illustration of a Green Bay Packer. It is truly a blessing to witness his continued accomplishments, both on and off the field.”

Rodgers holds four of the top five single-season team marks for passer rating (2009-12), two of the top three for passing TDs (2011-12), three of the top four for completion percentage (2010-12) and two of the top three for passing yards (2009, 2011).