For the first time in his 17-year NFL career, Aaron Rodgers is not participating in Packers OTAs.
But he has visited Hawaii recently.
Rodgers and his fiancée, actress Shailene Woodley, were recently vacationing in Hawaii with another couple — actor Miles Teller and model Keleigh Sperry. It's unclear whether the quartet is still in Hawaii, but photos and videos from the trip surfaced on Tuesday night and Wednesday morning.
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From hikes to swimming to dancing and karaoke nights, they all appear to be enjoying themselves.
Aaron Rodgers is living his best life rn 🌴
— The MMQB (@theMMQB) May 26, 2021
Hawaii > OTAs
(via @keleighteller) pic.twitter.com/J0paiYCgug
📸 | Shailene Woodley, Aaron Rodgers, Miles Teller and Keleigh Sperry in Hawaii.
— Shailene Woodley Updates (@PlanetShailene) May 26, 2021
Photos posted bu Keleigh. pic.twitter.com/7Jwe1XyO52
Overall, seems Aaron is certainly enjoying picking vacation over OTAs. pic.twitter.com/scq3R2GQmC
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) May 26, 2021
Certainly, that all looks like fun. And credit to Rodgers, he is a pretty good guitar player.
However, Rodgers missing OTAs brought about many jokes regarding his status with the Packers and where things might go heading into the 2021 season.
Aaron Rodgers on vacation instead of at OTAspic.twitter.com/EAolQIcetq
— Ian Hartitz (@Ihartitz) May 24, 2021
*Packers OTAs start this week*
— Annie Agar (@AnnieAgar) May 24, 2021
Aaron Rodgers on a beach somewhere: pic.twitter.com/B6QQoiUD5u
Don’t tell me you wouldn’t jump at the chance to watch a Whiplash reboot where Aaron Rodgers played the demanding acoustic guitar teacher and Miles Teller was the obsessive acoustic guitar prodigy with Jack Johnson posters on his dorm room wall. pic.twitter.com/Zzidwks2T1
— Kevin Van Valkenburg (@KVanValkenburg) May 26, 2021
Wonder if Miles Teller is trying to recruit Aaron to his favorite team. https://t.co/jUTwAjoWMY
— Mike Kaye (@mike_e_kaye) May 26, 2021
I saw Rodgers career ending many different ways. Playing the guitar in Hawaii with Miles Teller - not one of them.
— Ryan Horvat (@RyanHorvat) May 24, 2021
Meanwhile, as Rodgers stays away from Green Bay, the Packers are proceeding without the reigning MVP. The two sides are mired in a feud that has left Rodgers at odds with management. The Packers have maintained that they want Rodgers to return and start for them, but it's unclear whether that feeling is mutual.
With Rodgers unavailable at OTAs, Green Bay has been left with Jordan Love, Kurt Benkert and Blake Bortles as their quarterbacks at OTAs. That means Love, a 2020 first-round pick, has gotten most of the reps, but he is working with a makeshift receiving corps, as many of the Packers' receivers were not in attendance for the voluntary session.
Aaron Rodgers wasn’t the only Packer missing at Organized Team Activities today; so were Green Bay’s top five WRs: Davante Adams, Marquez Valdes-Scantling, Allen Lazard, Devin Funchess and Equanimeous St. Brown. So Jordan Love had to work with a makeshift WR crew.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) May 25, 2021
That serves as a reminder that absences during OTAs are fairly common. In Rodgers' case, it only matters because he has never skipped OTAs during his career, and the timing of his decision to do so amid a rift with the organization speaks volumes about how far apart the two sides may be on a potential resolution.