Several Eagles angles to the big Aaron Rodgers news

Pretty big news out of Green Bay on Monday as Aaron Rodgers is reportedly set to show up for Packers training camp. ESPN reports the Packers convinced Rodgers not to skip out by offering the reigning NFL MVP a number of concessions. We’re not going to dive into all of those details here but we are going to look at the Philadelphia angles to this news since there are a number of them.

1) The Eagles won’t face Rodgers in 2021

In the regular season, at least.

There was previously some buzz about Rodgers potentially ending up with the Denver Broncos. Had that come to fruition, the Eagles would’ve been tasked with beating Rodgers at Mile High. Now they’ll presumably face Drew Lock or Teddy Bridgewater instead. That’s obviously preferable.

2) The Football Team will have to face Rodgers in 2021

With the NFC East scheduled to play their same place division finishers in the NFC North this year, Washington gets Green Bay. They could’ve caught a break by facing Jordan Love instead. Barring injury, that won’t be happening now.

3) The NFC playoff picture isn’t getting any easier

Had Rodgers retired or been traded to the AFC, the NFC playoff picture would’ve been more open. His return ensures the Packers will be competing for the No. 1 seed. At the very least, Green Bay will likely be a playoff team. Not a beneficial development for Philly’s 2021 outlook.

4) No help towards making the Eagles’ 2022 first-round picks better

Had Rodgers been traded out of the NFC, the AFC playoff picture would’ve been even more competitive. It could’ve been tougher for the Miami Dolphins and/or the Indianapolis Colts to make the postseason, thus potentially helping to improve the position of the first-round picks* owed to the Eagles.

*Assuming the Carson Wentz trade conditions are met. Then again, the Colts making the playoffs could help the Eagles get a first if Wentz only plays somewhere between 70% and 74% of Indy’s snaps.

5 - The Eagles might have more competition for Deshaun Watson

While the Eagles are rumored to be hot after Watson, there’s also been buzz that the Broncos are in the mix. Being eliminated from landing Rodgers could increase Philly’s competition. Of course, you might see that as a good thing if you don’t want the Eagles to end up with Watson.

6 - The Eagles could try to pursue Rodgers in 2022

Part of the Packers’ aforementioned concession package reportedly includes allowing Rodgers to pick whatever team he wants to play for next season. If/when Rodgers looks to leave Green Bay after this year, the Eagles could be in a position to try to land him. They’d hardly be the only team interested in him, of course. And he probably won’t want to come to Philly unless it’s clear quarterback is the only missing piece here. But the non-zero chance of Rodgers playing for the Eagles is at least worth mentioning here.