The New England Patriots are hoping to get their hands on one of Travis Hunter or Abdul Carter with the fourth overall pick in the NFL Draft, and Aaron Rodgers can help them get there.
How? By retiring.
Rodgers made an appearance on the Pat McAfee Show this week, and in spite of all the rumors that he could potentially end up with the Pittsburgh Steelers, he told McAfee that he is leaving the door open to retirement.
While Rodgers' comments may seem innocuous and uneventful as far the Patriots are concerned, him possibly calling it quits would have a major effect on New England's NFL Draft plans.
Consider this: the Steelers are without a quarterback right now. They have surely been hoping that Rodgers would be under center for them in 2025, but if that doesn't happen, it would almost definitely result in Pittsburgh taking a quarterback with the 21st overall pick.
There has been plenty of chatter that Shedeur Sanders could slip, and some wondered if a team like the Cleveland Browns or New York Giants — who are drafting second and third overall, respectively — could trade back into the first round to bag Sanders a bit later.
However, it doesn't look like Sanders would get past Pittsburgh at this point, which may sabotage the plans of both the Browns and the Giants. It could ultimately push one of the two teams to take Sanders at pick No. 2 or 3, which would then leave one of Hunter or Carter on the board for the Pats.
This would be a dream scenario for the Patriots, who would probably settle for LSU tackle Will Campbell or simply trade down if neither Hunter nor Carter are available when they are on the clock. But the possibility of Rodgers stepping away from the game certainly changes things.
