Packers Rumors: Aaron Rodgers issued a shocking ultimatum to Mark Murphy

Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers were always destined for a messy breakup once the team traded up for Jordan Love in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft.

How could it not? The Packers were a game away from the Super Bowl only a few months earlier, but the team was showing its intention to move on in the not-too-distant future.

To Rodgers' credit, he handled the situation with Jordan Love well. He showed support to the Packers' first-round quarterback publicly and helped him develop. Rodgers has had nothing but praise for Love throughout the past few seasons.

But it was a far more awkward situation between Rodgers and Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst, who made the decision to trade up for Love three years ago.

A recent report from The Athletic shines some light on the messy breakup.

Packers Rumors: Aaron Rodgers issued a shocking ultimatum to Mark Murphy

Matt Schneidman of The Athletic provided some fascinating insight into the relationship between Rodgers and Gutekunst.

According to Schneidman, Rodgers' agent Dave Dunn issued an ultimatum to Packers president Mark Murphy in 2021.

Schneidman wrote: "According to a source associated with the team who was granted anonymity to candidly discuss the sensitive dynamics between the front office and the star quarterback, early in the 2021 offseason, Dunn, Rodgers' agent, called Packers president Mark Murphy with a request: Fire Gutekunst or trade Rodgers."

Schneidman added that Rodgers "deferred" to his agent when asked about the demand, while Dunn didn't respond to The Athletic.

That was two years ago. Rodgers ended up playing another two seasons in Green Bay.

Credit to Murphy. He didn't give in to the demands of Rodgers' agent by firing Gutekunst. He also didn't trade Rodgers that offseason. The Packers were clear: Rodgers was under contract, so he could either play in Green Bay or sit at home. They shut down the possibility of a trade at any opportunity when speaking to reporters.

Not only did Rodgers stay in Green Bay, he won another NFL MVP in 2021 and then signed a contract extension. As we've since found out, that extension only lasted a year, with the Packers trading Rodgers to the Jets this spring.

What a mess. It's pretty shocking to hear the report of Rodgers' agent demanding Gutekunst get fired or Rodgers traded. A him-or-us ultimatum.

Murphy was right not to fire his general manager because the QB wasn't happy. He was also smart for not giving in to trade demands from the face of the franchise. The Packers held firm.

A breakup was probably best for everyone. Rodgers is happy in New York and the Packers have moved on to their young first-round QB. It's just surprising they stayed together as long as they did.

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