The Facts: Rodgers said he was "surprised" by the team trading former receiver Davante Adams this offseason, in his first public comments since signing a three-year, $150 million extension and the trade of his No. 1 wide receiver. Speaking during an appearance on "The Pat McAfee Show," Rodgers said he believed his return to the Packers would influence their ability to strike a deal with Adams and that he had communicated with the two-time All-Pro before returning. Rodgers said the Packers will miss Adams but added that it's part of the transactional nature of the NFL. "It's a tough business, it's a wonderful profession. Those of us who have been [able] to play for so long realize that completely," he said. "There's a lot of things that happen that surprise you, even still. I thought that based on the number that we offered Davante and being able to play with me for a few more years would make a difference, but in the end I think he was ready to move on and wanted my help in making that happen."
Diehards Line:
In March, Green Bay traded Adams to the Las Vegas Raiders for a 2022 first-round and second-round pick. Even with their additional first-round pick, the Packers did not select a receiver in the first round of this year's draft, something they have never done in Rodgers' 17-year career. He wasn't upset or necessarily surprised by their decision, saying he had been communicating with the team throughout the night. With the top six receivers off the board -- Rodgers hinted that the Packers only had first-round grades on those six -- GM Brian Gutekunst went heavy on defense. During the draft, Gutekunst said coach Matt LaFleur was in an on-going text conversation with Rodgers. "Aaron, he's unbelievable," Gutekunst said. "Our communication, I mean where we were and where we are now, I would say is night and day. I'm very appreciative of that. He was here last week for a day and we certainly spent some time talking about our team and kind of where we thought we might be heading and some of the things we might want to do moving forward. ..." We'll see where that takes them over the rest of the draft this weekend.