Rodgers, other top NFL stars on new teams after active off-season

The NFL’s off-season is by far the longest of any of the major North American men’s professional sports leagues.

It will have been 207 days from when the Kansas City Chiefs defeated the Philadelphia Eagles in the Super Bowl on Feb. 12 to the start of the 2023 season next Thursday. That gives teams a ton of time to make significant moves –and just as much time for us to break them down.

Here is a look at five stars who changed teams ahead of the 2023 season.

Aaron Rodgers – New York Jets

Aaron Rodgers New York Jets

Let’s start with the biggest move of the off-season, and maybe the biggest move of any off-season in recent memory: Aaron Rodgers is now a New York Jet.

Rodgers’ departure from the Green Bay Packers felt like it was a long time in the making. In 2020, the team traded up to select Utah State quarterback Jordan Love in the first round of the NFL Draft. General manager Brian Gutekunst didn’t explicitly say after the draft that it was a succession plan, but a team wouldn’t use a first-rounder on someone it didn’t intend to play eventually. It was more a matter of when, and not if, the Packers and Rodgers would go their separate ways.

Well, three years and two MVP awards later, it finally happened. Rodgers said he “intended” to play for the Jets in 2023. Forty days later, the two teams worked out a deal, with New York sending multiple draft picks to Green Bay in exchange for the four-time MVP.

As much as Rodgers needed a fresh start, the Jets needed one even more. Since making back-to-back conference championships in 2009 and 2010, the Jets have missed the playoffs in 12 straight seasons and finished last in the division in each of the previous three. They’ve been even more inept at finding a quarterback.

The Jets drafted Sam Darnold No. 3 overall in 2018 and won just 13 games in three seasons with him as their starter. In 2021, they lost out on the top draft slot – later used by Jacksonville to select Trevor Lawrence – on the final day of the regular season and instead picked No. 2. That netted them Zach Wilson, who has struggled mightily in two seasons with more interceptions (18) than touchdowns (15).

Rodgers hasn’t said how much longer he intends to play, but did reveal earlier this summer he’s “having a blast” with the Jets and doesn’t necessarily see his time in New York “as a one-year-and-done thing.”

“He’s brought a lot of juice, obviously, and he’s brought a lot of hype and it’s awesome, because we want all of it,” head coach Robert Saleh said.

With Rodgers, the Jets are certain to get all they can handle.

Odell Beckham Jr. – Baltimore Ravens

Odell Beckham Jr. Baltimore Ravens

Odell Beckham Jr. was one of the biggest stars in football from 2014 to 2018.

His one-handed catch as a rookie made him a household name and Pro Bowl selections in each of his first three seasons proved he could make spectacular plays time and time again.

But Beckham’s production began to take a downward turn after a 2019 trade sent him to the Cleveland Browns. While he still went for 1,000-plus yards in his first season working with Baker Mayfield, it never really clicked between the two and things got worse when Beckham tore his ACL mid-way through the 2020 season. He returned the following year but still struggled to find success in the Cleveland offence. His exit out of town was all but sealed when his dad posted a video accusing Mayfield of intentionally not throwing to the star wideout.

Cleveland dealt the three-time Pro Bowler to the Los Angeles Rams and Beckham excelled, catching five touchdowns in eight games down the stretch of the regular season and hauling in another in the Super Bowl as the Rams defeated the Cincinnati Bengals to win their first Lombardi Trophy since 1999. That was the good news.

The bad news is that he suffered another torn ACL in the second quarter, an injury that forced him to miss all of 2022.

Meanwhile, the Baltimore Ravens found themselves at a crossroads of their own. Star quarterback Lamar Jackson needed a new contract and the Ravens seemed uneasy about giving him the Deshaun Watson-type deal he reportedly wanted after Jackson missed games injured down the stretch in each of the last two seasons.

After making finally making some headway in negotiations with Jackson that had turned ugly (and public), the Ravens signed Beckham to a one-year, $15 million deal with incentives that could push the total number even higher. It seemed to be enough of an olive branch as Jackson re-signed less than a month later.

Baltimore traded Marquise Brown – their lone 1,000-yard wideout since Mike Wallace in 2016 – to the Cardinals last off-season and struggled to replace him in 2022. Despite having one of the more talented QBs in the league, Baltimore finished fifth-last in total passing yards (3,040) and 19th in points. New offensive coordinator Todd Monken should help in both areas, who is expected to deviate from former OC Greg Roman’s run-first attack. A motivated Beckham eager to reclaim his spot as one of the sport’s top receivers shouldn’t hurt either.

"I'm excited, but I'm also very determined and hungry," Beckham said last month. "So through the smiles there's still this, 'I really want this badly.' I'm ready to be great, ready to be excellent again."

D.J. Moore – Chicago Bears

DJ Moore Chicago Bears

Here is the list of quarterbacks D.J. Moore has worked with since being selected in the first round by the Carolina Panthers in 2018: Cam Newton, Taylor Heinicke, Kyle Allen, Will Grier, Teddy Bridgewater, P.J. Walker, Sam Darnold and Baker Mayfield.

That’s a lot of names, and not a lot of talent.

Moore will have yet another new QB to get to know for 2023 after landing with the Chicago Bears in a deal that involved the No. 1 overall pick heading to the Carolina Panthers.

Despite all the turnover in who has thrown him the ball, one thing has been consistent about Moore – he produces. The 26-year-old receiver put up three consecutive 1,000-plus-yard seasons from 2019 to 2021 and while his production dropped off a bit yards-wise in 2022 (888), he had a career-best seven touchdowns.

Moore is now set to team up with Justin Fields, who figures to be the best pivot he’s ever worked with considering Newton was starting his decline in 2018 and Moore was still only a rookie.

Selected No. 11 overall in 2021, Fields showed extreme potential at times last season and did it with tight end Cole Kmet as leading pass-catcher. Fields will now also get to work with the best wideout he’s had since entering the NFL.

Another quarterback who took a massive leap forward in year three after the addition of a star receiver? See Josh Allen and Stefon Diggs as an example.

Fields hit Moore for a long touchdown in their preseason opener against the Tennessee Titans on Aug. 12. After the game, Fields said he and Moore might make a “legendary” duo.

Jimmy Garoppolo – Las Vegas Raiders

Jimmy Garoppolo Las Vegas Raiders

All throughout the summer of 2022, it seemed like the San Francisco 49ers and Jimmy Garoppolo would be going their separate ways.

He was heading to Cleveland as insurance for Deshaun Watson's looming suspension. Then he was going to Seattle after the Seahawks traded away Russell Wilson. And then he was an option for the Jets, who lost Zach Wilson with a knee injury in Week 1 of the preseason.

But for one reason or another, none of that happened, and Jimmy G returned to San Fran as a backup to Trey Lance. He was starting by Week 3 after Lance went down with a season-ending ankle injury.

Things went well for Garoppolo and the Niners over the next 10 weeks as he led the team to a 7-3 record and threw 16 touchdowns compared to four interceptions while averaging just over 220 yards per game. They weren’t eye-popping numbers, but they were exactly what the 49ers needed in Kyle Shanahan’s system.

But Garoppolo never got to finish his redemption story as a foot injury sidelined him for several weeks and Brock Purdy led the 49ers to a perfect 5-0 record to end the season. With him labelled as the guy going forward, Garoppolo finally gets a fresh start for 2023, signing a three-year contract with the Las Vegas Raiders.

The Raiders were also eyeing a makeover. Despite holding the franchise lead in passing yards (35,222) and touchdown passes (217), Derek Carr did not win a playoff game in nine years as starter and was benched for the rest of the season with the Raiders at 6-9.  

The move reunites Garoppolo with Josh McDaniels, who was his offensive coordinator during their time with the New England Patriots. A lot was made of the relationship once the deal became official, but McDaniels said the connection was a bit “overblown.” He might be right.

Garoppolo only started two games for the Patriots during his three years there and last appeared in a game alongside McDaniels in 2016.

“I think the reality is he’s just been a good football player,” McDaniels said earlier this summer. “He’s just been a good football player where he was [with the 49ers]. He didn’t play much for me in New England. You know, I got to be around him when he was developing, but he really put a stamp on what he’s about in San Fran. I know he was coached well by an incredible coaching staff there, and he’s doing some really good things here already.”

Jalen Ramsey – Miami Dolphins

Miami Dolphins

“F--k them picks.”

That was the message from Los Angeles Rams general manager Les Snead after they defeated the Cincinnati Bengals to win the Super Bowl two seasons ago.  

They went all-in to do it, trading multiple draft picks for established stars Matthew Stafford, Jalen Ramsey, Beckham Jr. and Von Miller, among others. But the bill came due last year and the Rams struggled to a 5-12 third-place finish in the NFC West.

Snead and the Rams decided that shedding salary and recouping draft assets was one of the priorities for 2023. And that meant a change of scenery for Ramsey.

Up stepped the Miami Dolphins, who returned to the playoffs for the first time since 2016 last season, falling 34-31 to the Buffalo Bills. Miami allowed the sixth-highest total yards through the air last season and allowed Josh Allen to throw for 352 more on wild-card weekend.

Ramsey was graded as the third most effective cornerback in 2022 according to Pro Football Focus and tied his career-high with four interceptions. He should be a huge addition to Miami’s secondary. But there’s one big problem.

Ramsey is going to miss more than half the season. And for a team that was prone to giving up yards through the air in a tough division like the AFC East, it’s a big blow.

The six-time Pro Bowler had a full meniscus repair in his left knee in July and is expected to be out until roughly December. Or, maybe not, if he has it his way.

“Tell me what the timeline is and I’ll beat it by a month,” head coach Mike McDaniel said Ramsey told him.

McDaniel added Ramsey’s procedure went well and said he expects him to be “100 per cent Jalen Ramsey” when he returns. If Miami can tread water in the secondary until then, Ramsey should be a huge boost in the later half of the season.