The Green Bay Packers confirmed the signing of NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers to a contract extension on Tuesday.
Prior to reports of a breakthrough in talks last week, the quarterback's future had been the subject of much speculation.
The four-time MVP – who has won the award in each of the past two seasons – was non-committal on whether he would return to Green Bay for the 2022 season.
Rodgers had entered the 2021 campaign in the wake of a stand-off with the Packers after his desire to leave was reported on the opening night of last year's draft.
A move elsewhere and retirement both seemed to be options on the table for Rodgers, who led the Packers to a NFL-best 13-4 record last season.
But relations between Rodgers and the Packers at the end of the season appeared more amiable than they were back in April of 2021 – and the 38-year-old soon confirmed he would be staying following the reported agreement.
Rodgers disputed the supposed $200million value of his new deal, but full details of the agreement were reported on Tuesday before the Packers announced his signing.
According to widespread reports, Rodgers agreed to a four-year extension to his deal, which has a year to run, although the final two seasons are placeholders for cap purposes that can be redone.
It means the $150m agreement is worth $50m per year to Rodgers over the next three seasons, the highest salary in the NFL on a per-year basis.
Announcing the contract but not its terms, Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst said: "We are very pleased to be able to come to an agreement with Aaron that keeps him in Green Bay.
"His play on the field and leadership in our locker room remain vital in our pursuit of another Super Bowl title.
"The agreement also allows us to maintain and enhance what we feel is already a very competitive roster."
Vikings acquire running back Akers from Rams
The Los Angeles Rams have found a taker for Cam Akers, trading the running back to the Minnesota Vikings.
The deal was completed on Wednesday, with the teams swapping draft picks in 2026.
Akers was a healthy scratch in last Sunday's 30-23 loss to the San Francisco 49ers, and the Rams confirmed this week they were looking for a trade partner.
A trade to Minnesota reunites Akers with Vikings coach Kevin O'Connell, who served as offensive coordinator for the Rams in Akers' first two NFL seasons.
The Vikings' ground game needs some help, averaging a league-low 34.5 rushing yards per game and 2.65 yards per attempt.
Alexander Mattison was given the No. 1 running back job as Minnesota opted to trade Dalvin Cook this offseason, but he's managed just 62 rushing yards on 19 carries.
Akers hasn't been any better this year, finishing with 29 rushing yards on 22 attempts in the Rams' 30-13 season-opening win over the Seattle Seahawks.
He is, however, coming off a career-high 786 rushing yards last season.
Drafted in the second round in 2020, the 24-year-old Akers, who is in the final year of his rookie deal, rushed for 625 yards and two touchdowns as a rookie.
A preseason Achilles tendon tear wiped out nearly all of his second season, but he was able to return for the regular-season finale and rush for 172 yards in four playoff games to help the Rams capture the Super Bowl.
Los Angeles is now moving forward at running back with Kyren Williams.
The second-year back made his first career start last week and ran for 52 yards with a touchdown on 14 carries after rushing for 52 yards with two TDs in Week 1.
New York Giants rule out RB Barkley for Week 3
The New York Giants have ruled out Saquon Barkley for Thursday's game against the San Francisco 49ers due to a sprained right ankle the star running back sustained Sunday against the Arizona Cardinals.
ESPN reported Monday that Barkley was expected to miss around three weeks after injuring his ankle in the latter stages of New York's 31-28 Week 2 win, though Giants coach Brian Daboll told reporters Tuesday the 2022 Pro Bowl selection was feeling better and the team had yet to make a determination on Barkley's status.
With Barkley unavailable, the Giants will have former 49er Matt Breida and Gary Brightwell as their top two running backs for Thursday's matchup.
Breida has spent the majority of his seven-year career as a backup, but did rush for 814 yards in 14 games with San Francisco in 2018. Brightwell's most extensive action came in the 2022 regular-season finale, in which he rushed for 60 yards on 11 carries against the Philadelphia Eagles.
Neither has the credentials of Barkley, who finished fourth in the NFL with a career-high 1,312 rushing yards and scored 10 touchdowns in 2022 to help the Giants to their first playoff appearance in six years. The 26-year-old accounted for 27.7 per cent of New York's total yards from scrimmage last season, the sixth-highest rate of any player for his respective team.
Barkley also played a major role in Sunday's win, in which the Giants overcame a 21-point third-quarter deficit. The 2018 No. 2 overall pick had both a rushing and receiving touchdown in the second half and ended the game with 63 rushing yards on 17 carries along with six receptions for 29 yards.
The two-time Pro Bowler has been slowed by ankle problems in the past, however. Barkley missed three games in 2019 with a high ankle sprain and four in 2021 with an injury to his left ankle.
The Giants will also be without starting left tackle Andrew Thomas for a second straight game due to a hamstring injury he suffered in the team's season-opening 40-0 loss to the Dallas Cowboys.
Browns reunite with running back Hunt after Chubb’s season-ending injury
After losing four-time Pro Bowl running back Nick Chubb for the remainder of the season, the Cleveland Browns decided to bring in a familiar face Wednesday by signing free-agent Kareem Hunt.
Chubb sustained a gruesome knee injury in Monday’s 26-22 loss at the Pittsburgh Steelers after getting off to a solid start to the 2023 season with 28 carries for 170 yards.
Chubb was third in the NFL in 2022 with 1,525 rushing yards and tied for fifth in the league with 12 touchdowns on the ground.
Jerome Ford took over as the No. 1 back at Pittsburgh and will remain in that role, with Hunt serving as his backup.
Ford, a fifth-round pick by Cleveland in the 2022 NFL Draft, ran the ball 16 times for 106 yards against the Steelers and added three receptions for 25 yards and a TD.
The Browns signed Hunt, an Ohio native, in February 2019 after he was released by the Kansas City Chiefs in November 2018 amid an NFL investigation of a video that showed him pushing a woman in the hallway of a hotel.
He was suspended for the first eight games of the 2019 season for violating the NFL’s personal conduct policy.
Hunt, who led the NFL with 1,327 rushing yards as a rookie in 2017 while with the Chiefs, ran for 1,874 yards and 16 TDs in 49 games over the last four seasons with Cleveland while totaling 132 receptions for 973 yards and seven scores.
The Browns (1-1) host the Tennessee Titans (1-1) on Sunday.
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
