Aaron Rodgers activated, but Jets say he won't be active for games

FLORHAM PARK, N.J. —  The Jets activated Aaron Rodgers from injured reserve, but he won't be active for any of their remaining three games.

"No, no, no, he's not playing," coach Robert Saleh said on Wednesday.

Saleh said they added Rodgers to their 53-man roster because that had some flexibility, although carrying four quarterbacks is not the norm.

The deadline to activate Rodgers, who tore his left Achilles tendon in Week 1, was Wednesday or he would remain on IR for the rest of the season and wouldn't be able to practice with the team.

This allows Rodgers to continue to work with his teammates rather than off on a side field with strength-and-conditioning coaches. Rodgers has logged some limited practices over the last three weeks. Saleh called it “a plus for everybody” to have Rodgers on the field.

“It’s all part of his rehab,” Saleh said. “We have the roster flexibility. Otherwise we probably wouldn’t be able to afford to do this.”

To make room for Rodgers, the Jets released fullback Nick Bawden. 

Rodgers was trying to make the quickest comeback from a torn Achilles tendon. If the Jets (5-9) were still alive in the playoff race, he said he would push to be cleared and to play.

Appearing on “The Pat McAfee Show” on Tuesday, Rodgers said that because the Jets were eliminated from postseason contention, there’s no reason to push it anymore. Rodgers said he won’t be 100% healthy for another three to four weeks, but he was willing to play at less than that if the Jets were playing for something.

“I’m not going to slow my rehab down,” Rodgers said. “I’m going to keep attacking it every single day. Now without a timetable to come back, we can be as smart as we need to be.”

Breece Hall, who was sidelined the final 10 games last season after tearing his ACL, believes Rodgers is doing the best thing for him by just focusing on his rehab.

“He has nothing to prove,” Hall said. “He is our leader, and we’d love to see him out there. If he doesn’t feel like he can, he shouldn’t have to.”

Saleh praised Rodgers for doing everything he could to play again this season.

“Who knows if the circumstances were different, get a couple of these wins, maybe we’re having a different conversation,” Saleh said. “I know he gave everything he could.”

Rodgers’ arrival gave the Jets a jolt and they felt they could compete for a championship. Instead they missed out on the playoffs for the 13th consecutive year. The Jets need to reload on the offensive side of the football. They rank last in total offense (255.1 yards) and touchdowns (13).

Having Rodgers healthy will certainly right some of their wrongs from this season. They also need to fix the offensive line and get Rodgers some weapons in the receiver room.

The supremely confident Rodgers said the future is bright for the Jets, and Saleh agreed.

“The excitement in August of 2023 was real,” Saleh said. “The excitement of everyone coming out of the tunnel on Sept. 11 was real. It’s unfortunate the way the season panned out, but we’ll have that excitement again. The expectation for me and I’ll speak for everyone around here is that we’ll win. And I think we will.”

Saleh appreciated the endorsement Rodgers gave him. He called Saleh “a fantastic coach.”

Rodgers also said he plans to play at least two years. Saleh believes Rodgers could play “three, four, five” more. But Saleh feels if the Jets win the Super Bowl next year that could lead to a storybook ending for Rodgers. He said they will be aggressive in building the team around Rodgers to win it all.

“Thankfully we do have a tremendous owner who has been willing to push the envelope as far as we can,” Saleh said. “ We got to be smart. We’ve got to make sure we’re doing the right things. We want to win a championship. We believe we can win a championship.

“I know he said two years, but in a perfect situation we win a championship next year and he walks off into the sunlight.”

By Al Iannazzone

al.iannazzone@newsday.comAl_Iannazzone

Al Iannazzone covers the Jets for Newsday after spending nearly two decades on the NBA beat with Knicks and Nets.