Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers has offered a hint on his future after admitting he does not want to be part of a rebuild.
The top-seeded Packers were eliminated from the NFL playoffs on Saturday after a 13-10 loss to the San Francisco 49ers, with Rodgers failing to throw a touchdown pass.
The 38-year-old MVP contender nearly departed Green Bay last off-season and was pressed on his future following Saturday's elimination.
Rodgers has been with the Packers for 14 seasons for one Super Bowl and is under contract for next season.
"I don’t want to be a part of a rebuild if I’m going to keep playing so a lot of decisions in the next couple of months,” Rodgers said during the post-game press conference.
"I‘m gonna take some time and have conversations with the folks around here, and then take some time away and make a decision - obviously before free agency.
"It’s fresh right now. It’s a little shocking for sure… I haven’t even let the moment sink in yet."
He added: "There's a lot of players whose futures are up in the air, so definitely will be interesting to see which way some of those decisions will go.
"But I'll have the conversations with [Packers general manager] Brian [Gutekunst] in the next week or so and get a little bit more clarity and think about my own future and how much longer I want to keep doing this.
“I think this thing is definitely going to look different in Green Bay moving forward."
Rodgers conceded he would need to mull the "tough decision" but said he was still competitive and determined to play at the highest level.
Packers head coach Aaron LeFleur put his pitch forward, insisting he wants Rodgers to stay. The veteran QB had an outstanding season, with a 68.9 percent completion rate, throwing 4115 yards for 37 touchdowns with only four interceptions.
"Certainly, we want him back here," LaFleur told reporters about Rodgers. "We‘d be crazy to not want him back here.
“He’s going to be the two-time MVP. This guy does so much for our football team. Not only what you guys see on Sundays or every game day, but what he does in that locker room and how he leads.
“I know what he puts into this thing and I’m certainly extremely disappointed that we couldn’t get over the hump for not only him, but for everybody in that locker room.”
Colts' Taylor to come off PUP list, could play in Week 5
The Indianapolis Colts could be getting a big part of their offence back for Sunday's game against the visiting Tennessee Titans.
The Colts will activate Jonathan Taylor from the physically unable to perform list this week, and depending how he looks in practise, he could be on the field for their next game.
Indianapolis' first practise of the week is Wednesday, and it will mark Taylor's first of the season after he was placed on the PUP list at the start of training camp while recovering from ankle surgery.
Colts coach Shane Steichen told reporters on Monday that Taylor is excited to rejoin the Colts and get back to work.
The ankle injury wasn't the only issue this offseason for Taylor, as the 2021 NFL rushing champion had been mired in a contract dispute and had requested a trade.
Taylor, the runner-up for the NFL's Offensive Player of the Year in 2021, is entering the final season of his rookie deal and is scheduled to earn $4.3 million in 2023.
The fourth-year pro ran for a franchise-record 1,811 yards in 2021, but was slowed by injuries last year and was put on the PUP list earlier this summer as he recovered from ankle surgery that ended his 2022 campaign in December.
Ankle issues limited Taylor to 11 games last season, which he finished with 861 rushing yards and four touchdowns while averaging 4.5 yards per attempt.
Taylor averaged 5.5 yards per carry during his sensational 2021 season in which he also tied for the NFL lead with 20 total touchdowns while playing in all 17 games.
He'll be joining a 2-2 team that got No. 4 overall pick Anthony Richardson back in Sunday's 29-23 overtime loss to the Los Angeles Rams after the rookie quarterback suffered a concussion in Week 2.
Without Taylor in the fold, Zack Moss has emerged as the team's No. 1 running back, and has rushed for 280 yards with a touchdown through three games.
Damar Hamlin: NFL return after cardiac arrest ‘meant everything’
Damar Hamlin said his return to the NFL “meant everything” nine months after suffering a cardiac arrest on the pitch.
The Buffalo Bills safety collapsed during a game in Cincinnati on January 2 and had to be resuscitated before being rushed to hospital.
Hamlin was cleared to resume his career and made his first NFL appearance on Sunday in the Bills’ 48-20 victory over the Miami Dolphins.
He told a post-match press conference: “That moment meant everything to me.
“I think it was more about proving something to myself than anything else, showing myself that I have the courage, I have the strength, I’ve got the pride, all those words, in me.
“To go through something so dramatic and be able to come back from it and to be able to still do what I love at the highest level in the world is amazing.”
Hamlin was the last player to emerge from the tunnel prior to the match and ran the length of the field before removing his helmet and soaking up the acclaim of the crowd.
Hamlin could be in the Bills’ side next Sunday when they travel to London to take on the Jacksonville Jaguars at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Late field goal lifts Kansas City Chiefs over brave New York Jets
The Kansas City Chiefs held off a brave effort from the New York Jets to claim their third win of the season 23-20 on Sunday night.
Having lost Aaron Rodgers in game one and staring down a three-game losing streak, pressure was mounting on under-fire Jets quarterback Zach Wilson to stand up against the NFL’s heavyweights.
The 24-year-old was able to do just that despite the narrow defeat, throwing for 245 yards and two touchdowns without a turnover.
Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes was below his best, giving up two intercepts with just one touchdown, but did just enough down the stretch to get Kansas City across the line with a late field goal.
Two of the NFL’s other best offences collided earlier on Sunday with the Buffalo Bills getting the better of the previously undefeated Miami Dolphins.
Bills quarterback Josh Allen was seemingly unstoppable, throwing for 320 yards and four touchdowns in a 48-20 win.
The Denver Broncos scraped past the Chicago Bears 31-28 to claim their first win of the season.
A 17-point fourth quarter lifted the Broncos to victory to leave the Bears winless through four games.
The early-season woes continued for the Cincinnati Bengals, who suffered their third loss of the season 27-3 to the Tennessee Titans.
There were also heavy losses for the Cleveland Browns and Pittsburgh Steelers, while the New England Patriots were steamrollered 38-3 by the Dallas Cowboys.
The Philadelphia Eagles stretched their winning streak to four with a 34-31 overtime win against the Washington Commanders.
Quarterback Jalen Hurts threw for 319 yards and two touchdowns, but it was Jake Elliott’s 54-yard field goal which ultimately got the Eagles over the line.
The Los Angeles Rams also had a narrow escape against the Indianapolis Colts, a touchdown to Puka Nacua in overtime ultimately proving the difference.
Elsewhere, the Los Angeles Chargers beat the Las Vegas Raiders, the unbeaten San Francisco 49ers downed the Arizona Cardinals 35-16, the Minnesota Vikings kept the Carolina Panthers winless with a 21-13 victory and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers cruised past the New Orleans Saints 26-9.
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