Return, Trade or Retirement: Which option do the Green Bay Packers prefer with Aaron Rodgers?

The drama between the Green Bay Packers and Aaron Rodgers continues and the issues between the two parties are no closer to being resolved.

Multiple reports continue to indicate that reigning NFL MVP Rodgers is holding firm in his demand for a trade, while the Packers have not flinched from their position that they will not trade their star quarterback.

The NFL community remains transfixed by this standoff. Which side will blink first? And what do the Green Bay Packers want Rodgers to do?

Option 1 - The Packers trade him

Many NFL experts, players and teams expect the Packers to eventually trade their star quarterback. If Rodgers is as disillusioned with the franchise as it seems, it would be best for the team and the player to part ways.

An Aaron Rodgers trade would save the Packers $14.7 million against the salary cap and they would gain draft picks and potentially some decent players.

It seems that this is what Rodgers wants right now, but will Packers CEO Mark Murphy pull the trigger on such a move?

Murphy was part of the front office that cut franchise legend Brett Favre but that was under very different circumstances. Favre was nearing the end of his career and they had Aaron Rodgers ready to start. Jordan Love is currently the only quarterback on the Packers' roster other than Rodgers and he hasn’t taken a single snap in the NFL.

Unless a team throws the kitchen sink at the Packers, it seems unlikely that Murphy will bend to Rodgers' trade demands.

Option 2 - He returns to the Packers

Rodgers' return to the team for the 2021 season is the resolution that Packers fans are hoping for.

The three-time MVP is a Packers legend. He's a Super Bowl champion and has led the team to back-to-back NFC championship games in the last two seasons. It seems inconceivable that CEO Mark Murphy and GM Brian Gutenkurst would not want Rodgers to return.

The QB is under contract through the 2023 season and it is been reported that the Packers have tried to extend his current deal. Some believe that if Gutekunst is fired, Rodgers would happily return to the team.

If the Packers were looking to move on from Rodgers, it would make more sense to cut him after this season when they would save roughly $22 million in cap room.

Option 3 - Aaron Rodgers retires

One option that hasn’t been discussed much is for Rodgers to simply ride off into the sunset and host "Jeopardy!" full-time.

Not only could Rodgers work on his golf game in retirement, it would also save the Packers a lot of money. The reigning MVP would have to return around $30 million that the team paid him as a signing bonus.

If Rodgers does threaten to retire there’s a real chance the Packers front office might just wish him the best in his future endeavors. It would help them avoid plenty of drama while improving their salary cap situation.

But at 37 and coming off an MVP season, Rodgers doesn’t look ready to call it a day just yet.