Green Bay Packers

Aaron Rodgers has his money, but at what cost to the Packers?

Updated Apr. 4, 2022 8:49 p.m. ET

Aaron Rodgers' contract is taking up a sizable chunk of the Packers' salary cap.

He's set to rake in more than $50 million through the course of the next calendar year, and though Rodgers himself is rolling in the dough, his team has been left with little dividends to build around him due to the size of his latest contract.

And despite retaining its QB1, Green Bay parted ways with Davante Adams, Za'Darius Smith (who linked up with the division-rival Vikings) and Marquez Valdes-Scantling shortly after completing the Rodgers deal, which in the eyes of many still leaves the Packers at a significant loss heading into next season.

In the eyes of Colin Cowherd, the Packers' offseason moves could lead to a loss of the first-place stranglehold they've maintained on the division for several years.

"Right now, the Packers, in a weapons league, have easily the worst wide receiving corps in the league," Cowherd said Monday on the "The Herd." "The last remaining good receiver on the market — DeVante Parker — went to the Patriots. New England may be second, and they're miles better. D.K. Metcalf may be available on the market, but is Green Bay making a play for him?"

Cowherd went on to explain that Green Bay's lack of ownership could diminish the urgency level for the front office to pursue premier pass-catching talent.

"Green Bay doesn't have an owner, so the front office doesn't feel pressure by a Jerry Jones, or [Jimmy] Haslam, or Stan Kroenke. It also has a fractured relationship with Aaron Rodgers. Are we sure Green Bay's front office, knowing how prickly and sensitive Rodgers is, isn't thinking, ‘This is your wide receiving corps, champ.’ And we know that when they struggle, he does not take well to criticism. And in a year, he'll say, ‘Get me out of here.’ It has been kind of odd that Green Bay won't go after any receivers."

The team's WR depth chart consists of: Allen Lazard, Chris Blair, Juwann Winfree, Randall Cobb, Malik Taylor, Amari Rodgers, and Rico Gafford — not exactly a first-rate bunch of household names.

But for now, it's who Rodgers has at his disposal, and in Cowherd's mind, that reality might not change.