Packers' Aaron Rodgers to Go on 4-Day 'Darkness Retreat', Will Contemplate NFL Future

Aaron Rodgers isn't taking his decision about either retiring this offseason or returning to the NFL for another season lightly. In fact, he'll be utilizing a darkness retreat in an effort to further clarify his thoughts.

"I think it's going to be important to get through this week, and then to take my isolation retreat. Just to be able to contemplate all things my future, and then make a decision that's best for me moving forward in the highest interests of my happiness," he said on the Pat McAfee Show on Tuesday.

McAfee then asked about the isolation retreat, and Rodgers offered more details:

"It's four nights of complete darkness. ... You can leave. If you can't do it, you can just walk out the door. But it's a darkness retreat. And I've had a number of friends who have done it, and had some profound experiences. It's something that's been on my radar for a few years now and I thought it would be awesome to do regardless of where I was leaning after this season, so it's been on the calendar for months and months and months. And it's coming up in a couple weeks."

Such retreats are rituals in both Tibetan Buddhism and Bön, which use sensory deprivation to aid retreaters in having organic visions. For Rodgers, perhaps the time spent in isolation will help him crystalize his own thoughts about his own playing future.