Aaron Rodgers is still contemplating whether to continue his playing career. If he does, it appears it won’t be with the New York Jets.

The team has told the 41-year-old quarterback it is “moving on from him,” Fox Sports reported Sunday.

Rodgers said toward the end of the Jets’ 5-12 season he was undecided on his playing future, saying he wanted to take “a break mentally to kind of refresh and put my feet in the sand, and see where I’m at after that.”

But there was uncertainty as to whether the Jets would even want to move forward with the four-time MVP as the team’s quarterback. The Jets recently hired general manager Darren Mougey and coach Aaron Glenn, and owner Woody Johnson said at their introductory news conference on Jan. 27 the new regime would have the final say in that decision.

Glenn said he already had texted Rodgers and there would be discussions with him — as well as other players on the roster — in the near future. The new Jets coach also told reporters “this thing is not about Aaron Rodgers,” saying it’s a big-picture approach with the focus on the entire team.

And apparently, the Jets will move forward without Rodgers.

Fox Sports first reported that Rodgers met with the Jets in New Jersey and was told of the team’s plans.

The Jets also have veteran Tyrod Taylor and Jordan Travis, who spent his rookie season on the non-football injury list, on the roster. But New York has the No. 7 overall pick in the draft in April and could pursue a QB.

Rodgers, the fifth player in NFL history to throw 500 touchdown passes in the regular season, has one year of non-guaranteed money left on his contract with the Jets. He would count $23.5 million against the salary cap.

While his 28 touchdown passes and 3,897 yards passing this season both rank third for a single season in franchise history, Rodgers was not the dynamic playmaker he once was.

He had a vintage Rodgers-like effort in his final game with the Jets, throwing a season-high four touchdown passe s in a win over Miami on Jan. 5. But those types of moments in his two-year tenure with New York were few and far between.

The San Francisco 49ers gave receiver Deebo Samuel permission to seek a trade, multiple sources reported.

ESPN first reported that Samuel and his agent had permission to pursue a possible trade after Samuel originally made the request in a season-ending meeting with coach Kyle Shanahan.

“It was a hard conversation to have with Kyle because of the relationship that we have,” Samuel told ESPN. “But I have to do what’s best. I’m more than thankful for the Niners giving me the opportunity of a lifetime, but now I think it’s best that we find another team.”

After posting an All-Pro season in 2021 with 1,770 yards from scrimmage and 14 touchdowns in 2021, Samuel’s production has dropped after he signed a three-year, $71.6 million extension the following offseason that runs through the 2025 season.

Samuel had 51 catches for 670 yards and three touchdowns and averaged only 3.2 yards on his 42 carries as he dealt with some injuries last season. Samuel hasn’t reached 900 yards receiving in a season since the breakthrough 2021 campaign.

The Buffalo Bills fired special teams coordinator Matthew Smiley, multiple sources reported.

Smiley’s job status was in question after a series special teams blunders in his third season as coordinator. Opponents twice converted first downs on fake punts. The Bills also allowed two touchdown returns, including one off a blocked punt in a 44-42 loss to the Rams on Dec. 8. The loss to the Rams was sealed in the final seconds when Buffalo was unable to muster a punt block after fielding just nine players.

MLB

He’s ba-ack.

Kiké Hernandez said on social media that he had re-signed with the Dodgers, one day before Dodgers pitchers and catchers will report to Camelback Ranch for the start of spring training. The agreement is a one-year deal.

A fan favorite, Hernandez returned for his second stint with the Dodgers when he was acquired at mid-season in 2023 after two seasons with the Boston Red Sox. He re-signed on a one-year contract last spring and became a free agent again this winter.

The Dodgers had a standing offer to Hernandez, valuing his energy in the clubhouse and history of stepping up in the postseason. Hernandez explored the free-agent market before accepting that offer.

His return calls into question the status of fellow veteran utilityman Chris Taylor, who is in the final year of a four-year, $60 million contract and is coming off the worst season of his career with the Dodgers (a .202 average and .596 OPS). If Taylor remains on the roster, young outfielders Andy Pages and James Outman are likely headed back to Triple-A.

Hernandez was headed to the worst season of his career through July 24 last year. He was batting .193 with a .567 OPS at that point. Over the rest of the regular season, however, he hit .280 with a .777 OPS then took it to another level in the postseason with a .294 average, .808 OPS and two home runs.

Over his 11-year career, Hernandez is a .238 hitter with a .713 OPS. In 86 postseason games, however, he has hit .278 with an .874 OPS and 15 home runs.

— Bill Plunkett

MIXED MARTIAL ARTS

Dricus Du Plessis didn’t like the way his first meeting with Anaheim native Sean Strickland ended in a split decision a little more than a year ago, so he made sure there was no doubt on Sunday at UFC 312 in Sydney.

In a rather lackluster rematch, Du Plessis retained his middleweight belt with a dominating unanimous decision over a bloodied Strickland.

“This was a big proving point for me, (but) I don’t want to make it a habit of these decisions,” Du Plessis said. “The game plan here was stay calm, because (my coach) said, ‘You know you can knock somebody out. We know you have that dog (in you). Try and stay calm.’ Because It was really hard once I saw him grabbing at his nose.”

It was the second title defense for the 31-year-old Du Plessis (23-2) after defeating Israel Adesanya with a fourth-round submission on Aug. 17 in Perth, Australia.

The first round saw Strickland (29-7) trying to establish his jab, while Du Plessis stayed aggressive with an array of kicks.

Strickland continued to approach his attacks cautiously in the second round, attempting to pick his spots. Other than a strong right hand early in the round, it was Du Plessis who won the significant-strikes battle, 28-17.

The fourth round saw the most action, with the champion breaking Strickland’s nose with a hard right punch and then applying nonstop pressure on his challenger. While the first three rounds were extremely close, Du Plessis dominated the fourth.

Du Plessis continued to pepper Strickland’s nose in the final round, while staying on the attack to confirm the win.

In the co-main event, women’s strawweight champion Zhang Weili (26-3-0) overcame a rough first round and controlled more than 21 minutes of her title defense against No. 1 contender and Corona native Tatiana Suarez (11-1-0) to earn a unanimous decision to retain her belt.

Zhang has won her past four title defenses, three by unanimous decision and the other by second-round submission.

SKIING

Franjo von Allmen won gold in the downhill at the Alpine skiing world championships as the Swiss team swept the men’s speed events in Saalbach-Hinterglemm, Austria.

Competing in his first worlds, Von Allmen, 23, crowned his meteoric rise in the sport by winning the marquee event of the championships, two days after star teammate Marco Odermatt won gold in the super-G where he placed 12th.

“It sounds crazy, I just try to put the emotions in the right place, but it feels amazing,” Von Allmen said. “I had no pressure, nothing to lose, just trying to do my best performance.”

Von Allmen beat silver medalist Vincent Kriechmayr by 0.24 seconds. The Austrian won the world title in both downhill and super-G four years ago.

His Swiss teammate Alexis Monney was 0.31 behind in third to take the bronze, while defending champion Odermatt was fifth.

TENNIS

Carlos Alcaraz secured his first indoor title by beating Alex de Minaur in the final of the Rotterdam Open in The Netherlands. The top-seeded Alcaraz won 6-4, 3-6, 6-2 to become the first Spanish champion in the tournament’s 52-year history.

It was a 17th title for the Alcaraz, 21, but his first indoor one.