After an emotionally charged couple of weeks, Aaron Rodgers finally had a release on Sunday as he walked off the field following the Green Bay Packers' 17-0 shutout of the Seattle Seahawks. 

Rodgers missed the Packers' loss at the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 9 after testing positive for COVID-19 and has been at the centre of a public debate ever since. 

Though he was far from his best after missing two weeks of practice, reigning NFL MVP Rodgers was grateful just to be back in his comfort zone at Lambeau Field as he led the Packers (8-2) to another victory. 

"Good to be back with the guys, good to be back at home, good to be on the field, really," Rodgers told reporters via videoconference. 

"The most emotions from the whole night was probably walking off the field after the game. It definitely got me a little misty."

Asked why he thought he felt that way, Rodgers responded: "I don't take these things for granted, walking off the field as a winner." 

Rodgers completed 23 of 37 passes for 292 yards in his return, but the Packers' only touchdowns came on fourth-quarter runs by AJ Dillon. 

On a night that saw his counterpart Russell Wilson become the latest star quarterback swallowed up by the Green Bay defence, Rodgers threw a key interception in the end zone late in the third quarter but otherwise avoided major mistakes. 

"I felt pretty good for the most part," Rodgers said. "I feel like I played fairly solid. Obviously I had the one bad decision in the red zone and probably missed a couple of throws."

Rodgers did acknowledge afterward that he felt a bit like "Anchorman" character Ron Burgundy, merely repeating what Green Bay head coach Matt LaFleur said via his headset to the team in huddles because he did not have a feel for the flow of the game after missing so much practice. 

The 37-year-old quarterback also told reporters after the game that he was tired – "It's been a long 10 days" – and LaFleur echoed that sentiment about the team as a whole. 

"I think our team is tired, to be honest with you," LaFleur said. "It definitely felt like you could feel the energy was maybe a little bit off." 

The good news for the Packers is their defence is showing no signs of fatigue. Facing Wilson, Patrick Mahomes and Kyler Murray the last three games, the Packers have allowed just 34 points. 

"It's so important to be able to win games in different fashions in this league," LaFleur said, "and I thought our defence really carried the night."

It wouldn't be an NFL offseason without some contract controversies.

Though the two most recent collective bargaining agreements have made it more difficult for players to hold out, several teams are still approaching the start of training camp needing to resolve issues surrounding players unhappy with the terms of their current deal.

Aaron Rodgers' continued self-enforced exile has cast a shadow over the offseason, but his staring contest with the Green Bay Packers is not tied to his level of remuneration.

For four big-name defenders who skipped mandatory minicamp – though Jamal Adams was permitted to do so due to personal reasons – it is indeed about the money.

New England Patriots cornerback Stephon Gilmore said recently to ESPN: "I just want what I'm worth, however that plays out. Every player should be paid what they're worth. That's just how it is."

But what is the worth of Gilmore and the three other high-profile defensive players? And should the teams in question make the effort to sign them to more lucrative deals?

Stats Perform looked at the advanced metrics surrounding each player to assess the best course of action for their respective franchises.

Stephon Gilmore, CB, New England Patriots

Gilmore's demand to be paid what he is worth may strike some as bemusing from a player who carries the highest salary cap hit among cornerbacks ($16.27million) and missed five games in a down year.

However, his wish is more likely related to his base salary rather than his overall cap number. Gilmore is due $7m in base salary in 2021, half of what Byron Jones of the Miami Dolphins, whose $14m base salary is the most among corners, is scheduled to receive next season.

Though 2020 was a disappointing year for Gilmore and the entire Patriots defense, he has a strong case for narrowing that gap to Jones.

While he only managed one interception and three pass breakups, Gilmore still had the edge over Jones in several metrics.

His adjusted open percentage, which measures how frequently an opponent got open against a defender's coverage, adjusted for position, was 24.18 compared to 26.16 for Jones.

Though both spent time playing as inside corners, both Gilmore and Jones are primarily outside defenders and there was a contrast between the two when they lined up at that spot in 2020. Gilmore allowed a burn – when a receiver wins his matchup on a play where he is targeted regardless of whether the pass is catchable – on 50 per cent of his targets, compared to 60.4 for Jones.

Gilmore was also superior in terms of burn yards per target (10.08 to Jones' 14.08), while his burn yards per snap average of 1.36 was 12th among corners with at least 200 pass coverage snaps on the outside. Jones struggled by comparison, allowing 1.92 burn yards per snap.

The Patriots used a lot of their salary cap space on a free-agency splurge they hope will get them back in contention. However, given Gilmore's past level of performance – since signing with New England in 2017, he has racked up 52 pass breakups, tied for sixth-most in the NFL, and 11 interceptions – they might well be wise to find a way to negotiate a contract with an increased base salary for a player whose unadjusted open percentage of 46.6 was fourth among outside corners in his last full season in 2019.

Xavien Howard, CB, Miami Dolphins

Like Gilmore, Howard may also be comparing his contract to that of Dolphins team-mate Jones, whom Miami made the highest-paid cornerback in the NFL with a five-year $82.5m deal in March 2020.

Howard still has four years left on a deal paying him over $15m a year, but the All-Pro will have his eyes on a contract closer to Jones' average annual value of $16.5m.

Such compensation would unquestionably be deserved given Howard led the league in interceptions for the second time in three seasons in 2020 by picking off 10 passes.

His adjusted open percentage of 25.19 was almost a full percentage point better than that of Jones, and he had a significant edge in burn yards per target, though Howard was not exactly impressive in that category, giving up an average of 11.12 while playing on the outside.

Yet that number is likely more reflective of how often the Dolphins left Howard in single coverage. Indeed, Howard's average depth of target of 14.5 yards speaks to the frequency with which he was given the task of staying in tight coverage with a receiver downfield.

The Dolphins aren't flush with cap room – Miami sit just over $5.5m under the 2021 cap – but, in a year where the team will be expected to make a year-three leap under head coach Brian Flores, identifying a method by which to keep Howard happy is the smart move.

With a league-leading 18 interceptions in the past three seasons, Howard is a playmaker the Dolphins need on the field and motivated if they are to challenge in the AFC.

Jamal Adams, S, Seattle Seahawks

Having long since angled for a lucrative extension even before his blockbuster trade to the Seahawks last offseason, Adams is finally in line for his payday at some point this year.

Still playing on his rookie contract and due to earn close to $10m in 2021, Adams will have designs on becoming one of the highest-paid safeties in the NFL.

Justin Simmons of the Denver Broncos is the safety with the top contract, his average annual salary coming in at over $15m, but a better comparison for Adams may be division rival Budda Baker of the Arizona Cardinals ($14.75m).

Baker and Adams each spend a significant amount of time in the box and down near the line of scrimmage and the latter's reprsentatives will base much of their argument in negotiations around him leading the Seahawks in sacks with 9.5 last year.

Yet they may struggle to make a compelling case when the discussion turns to his skills in pass coverage.

Adams finished the 2020 season with an adjusted open percentage of 24.94, comfortably below that of Baker, who set the fourth-best mark among all NFL defenders with 16.38 per cent.

Such a disparity would on the surface appear to make it tough to justify Seattle giving Adams a deal akin to that of Baker.

Yet after surrendering two first-round picks to prise Adams from the Jets, the Seahawks have locked themselves into a situation where they have no choice but to pay him. Though he has proven himself a playmaker near the line of scrimmage, his performance in coverage should lead Seattle to try to ink Adams to a deal with eye-catching headline numbers but a team-friendly structure.

Chandler Jones, EDGE, Arizona Cardinals

Due to earn $15.5m in base salary and carry a $20.8m cap hit in the final year of his contract in 2021, Jones' desire to receive the compensation he believes he is due before his deal expires is likely motivated by the Cardinals' decision to sign J.J. Watt to a two-year, $28m deal this offseason.

Watt remains an ominous presence on the defensive line, but – now 32, with a checkered injury history, and having posted nine sacks in 24 games over the past two seasons – his signing is a gamble by the Cardinals, and Jones may be wondering why they did not instead invest in keeping him around.

Jones has been the picture of consistency for the Cardinals, posting double-digit sacks in each of his first four seasons with Arizona before a torn bicep cut his 2020 campaign short after five ineffective games.

The Cardinals' reticence to pay the 31-year-old now is understandable given that recent injury, but Jones will feel he has already proven himself dependable heading into 2021 and is more deserving of a new deal than several of his fellow edge rushers who have already received paydays this offseason.

In his last full season in 2019, only one edge rusher, Cameron Jordan (70), had more pressures where he beat a pass protector than the 69 Jones produced.

Watt had 51 such pressures in 2020, Shaquil Barrett received a $17m-a-year contract from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers after producing 53, while Leonard Floyd was paid $16m a year by the Los Angeles Rams after beating a man on 39 pressures.

Those deals complicate matters for the Cardinals, who might have to choose between paying a player they may not trust to stay healthy and potentially shipping out the most productive pass rusher in their recent history.

The obvious solution is a new deal laden with playing-time incentives that reward Jones for staying healthy. If that cannot be done, then the Cardinals could possibly soften the blow of losing him by getting a clutch of 2022 draft picks to help them restock their defense in return via trade.

Seattle Seahawks coach Pete Carroll has cooled talk of a reunion with former All-Pro cornerback Richard Sherman.

Following three seasons with the San Francisco 49ers, the 33-year-old Sherman is a free agent.

In an interview with ESPN on Friday, Sherman said he had been in communication with the New Orleans Saints and Las Vegas Raiders, along with the Seahawks.

"I've talked to Sherm quite a few times here over the offseason," Carroll confirmed, as per ESPN.

"So we have stayed in contact and he's out there. I know he's thinking about it.

"He's looking for an opportunity. I saw where he said there's three or four teams he's considering or whatever.

"So we'll see what happens. But he's been a great player and he's still got some ball left in him, I'm sure.

"But at this point we're going to clear through this day, figure out what happens with the rooks coming up and we'll see where it sits later on."

The Seahawks signed Oklahoma cornerback Tre Brown with one of their three draft picks and Carroll insists a move to bring back Sherman, who starred for Seattle between 2011 and 2017, is not immediately in the works.

"That's not one of our thoughts right now that we're going out and getting another guy at that spot, but we're going to keep looking," Carroll said.

"We're not going to stop looking and we're going to compete. So in that sense, I leave everything open and that's just one of them."

Sherman was a key member of the Seahawks team that claimed Super Bowl glory in 2014 and came up agonisingly short of a repeat against the New England Patriots in the following year's showpiece.

He was named a First Team All-Pro three times in Seattle and made four Pro Bowls.

Injuries have taken an increased toll, however. The Seahawks released Sherman in the 2017 offseason after he suffered a torn Achilles and, after a fifth career Pro Bowl in 2019 and helping the 49ers to the Super Bowl, he missed 11 games with a calf injury last season.

"I want to get on a competitive team," Sherman told ESPN. "I think I still have a lot to give to the game.

"I think I still have a lot that I want to accomplish and I think I can go out there and help a defense come together like it should and reach their potential, reach the heights that the defenses that I've played on have reached."