Packers Morning Buzz: Aaron Rodgers talks playing beyond age 40, cementing legacy in Green Bay

Welcome to your Morning Buzz, rounding up news and views regarding the Green Bay Packers from around the web and here at PackersNews.com.

We'll start with Aaron Rodgers talking about how he hopes to play at least four more years and ultimately cap his legacy by completing his career in Green Bay.

On the radio with Pat McAfee and A.J. Hawk on Friday, Rodgers (who will turn 37 in December) was asked for his thoughts about the big money being handed out this offseason to three free-agent quarterbacks who are older than him – Philip Rivers (38) by the Colts, Drew Brees (41) by the Saints and Tom Brady (42) by the Buccaneers.

"My thing is, legacy is really important, and having the opportunity do it all in Green Bay would mean a lot to me," Rodgers said."I understand kind of the track record of our squad, there have been times where we've had veteran players and they finished elsewhere. And I get it.

"I'd like to make that decision easy for them and the only way to do that is to keep playing at a high level and give them no choice but to keep bringing you back because you're the best option and give them the best chance to win.

"So that's my goal, and I've got four years left on my deal and I'd like to play four at a really, really high level and if I feel I can keep on keeping on from that point, to do it.

"I feel confident right now ... maybe (age) 40 when the deal ends ... I feel like I could keep going after that, the way things have been going."

Meanwhile, general manager Brian Gutekunst has acknowledged that he's open to drafting a young quarterback to groom as Rodgers' successor, and Tom Silverstein writes that the Packers are wise to be prepared:

Rodgers barely got back home from Peru before a coronavirus shutdown:

Brett Favre, Davante Adams, David Bakhtiari join NFL stars in conveying an important message:

Former Packers receiver Geronimo Allison is moving on to Motown:

Packers' punt returns should be in good hands in 2020:

Former Packers receiver Randall Cobb likens Deshaun Watson, his new quarterback in Houston after signing with the Texans, to Rodgers:

"I think the biggest thing is the chemistry with the quarterback," Cobb said during his introductory conference call Friday. "That's one thing that I'm excited to come in and build and be able to learn what (Watson) likes and show him what I'm good at and just being able to communicate and be on the same page. When I watch his highlights, a lot of the routes that were ran by the slot receivers are a lot of the stuff that I'm used to in my career. I've ran a lot of routes out of the slot just being my primary position for most of my career.

"I think, obviously, when I played with (Aaron) Rodgers my first eight years, a lot of what he did was late in the play, scrambling around, moving around and just being able to find ways to get open after the initial route and create separation and be a target and find a way to get open for him in those situations. I see a lot of the same characteristics in Deshaun (Watson), the way he's able to escape the pocket and keep his eyes downfield and find receivers."

You can read more from Cobb here:

Jason Wilde of the Wisconsin State Journal explores what Aaron Jones is worth in this era of a devalued market for running backs:

The Vikings are one of the three 2019 playoffs teams most likely to go in the wrong direction this season, writes NFL.com's Marc Sessler:

And finally: Rodgers made a lighthearted reference to the Packers' most recent signing when asked about the team's free-agency moves during his Friday radio appearance:

"Did you hear about a guy named Funchess?" asked Rodgers, referring to free-agent wide receiver pickup Devin Funchess. "So you have 'fun' and 'chess' in the same name – you know it's going to be pretty good."

Contact Stu Courtney at (920) 431-8377 or scourtney@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @stucourt