5 more years

Well, he is the future.

Quarterback Aaron Rodgers’ impressive performance in seven starts was enough for the Green Bay Packers to sign him Friday to a lucrative contract through the 2014 season.

Rodgers signed the deal after practice at about 1 p.m. Terms were not disclosed.

“I’m very excited knowing that my future is going to be here in Green Bay,” Rodgers said. “I appreciate the commitment they’ve made to me. Hopefully, I can prove to them that they made the correct decision to give me this extension.”

Rodgers, 24, signed a five-year, $7.66 million contract in August 2005 after being the 24th selection in the first round. He was playing under his existing contract, which included a base salary of $1.052 million in both 2008 and ’09, although his ’09 base salary would have increased substantially because of an escalator clause.

Solid.

Is Rodgers a worthy successor to Brett Favre?

“I don’t know if I’m going to compare him to anybody,” said Thompson. “We just think he’s going to be a very good NFL quarterback.

“We’re looking at it from a longer view rather than just the last two months. I do think he’s gone in and played the games well. He’s had good command of the huddle. He has handled the chaos of an NFL game pretty well.

“We think he will continue to develop in his craft.”

Now it's official.