Jets' C.J. Mosley has Super Bowl dreams
C.J. Mosley of the Jets walks off the field after a game against the Patriots at MetLife Stadium on Oct. 30, 2022. Credit: Jim McIsaac
C.J. Mosley has this recurring dream.
It’s February. He’s playing inside a big stadium with thousands of fans in the seats and millions more watching from home.
The dream always ends the same for the All-Pro Jets linebacker.
“Kissing the trophy with confetti flying down,” Mosley told Newsday.
Mosley, 31, has this dream every year. He’s entering his fourth season with the Jets and his ninth in the NFL. He truly believes — maybe for the first time as a Jet — that winning a Super Bowl is attainable this season.
“For sure,” Mosley said. “If there’s been any time since I’ve been here, definitely this year is the high point of it.”
Mosley left Baltimore in 2019 and signed a five-year, $85 million deal with the Jets. From the moment he arrived, he talked about wanting to change the “Same Old Jets” narrative.
This could be the year.
If the Jets win the Super Bowl, Mosley won’t be satisfied with just one.
“Hopefully we can do it and get a couple more,” he said. “Don’t be afraid to dream big. This thing could turn into a dynasty if we want it to.”
It’s been 55 years since the Jets’ only Super Bowl win. They haven’t made the playoffs in 12 seasons. The history is unsightly, but the Jets believe things will change.
Starting now.
Getting Aaron Rodgers has made the Jets a legitimate Super Bowl contender. The four-time MVP has raised everyone’s play and attention to detail.
Like Mosley, Rodgers envisions winning a Super Bowl with this franchise and lifting that Lombardi Trophy. Like Mosley, Rodgers also openly talks about it, believing if you speak it into existence, it will happen.
“I visualize that all the time,” Rodgers said. “That’s part of training your mind and being intentional with your words about the manifestation of those thoughts, goals and dreams into reality. You first have to have that belief. I believe strongly in that. That’s why we talk about it. We don’t shy away from it.”
Rodgers could be the difference-maker for the Jets. He’s the leader of an improved offense that boasts playmakers Garrett Wilson, Breece Hall, Dalvin Cook, Allen Lazard and Mecole Hardman.
Mosley’s presence can’t be understated, though.
He’s the quarterback of the defense, the unquestioned leader of a group that was top four last year and believes it can jump to No. 1 this year.
Last season, Mosley finished ninth overall with 158 tackles. He made his fifth Pro Bowl and was named second-team All-Pro for the fifth time. It was the first time he accomplished either as a Jet.
“He’s a stud, man,” Saleh said. “He is The Captain. C.J. embodies everything you want out of a professional football player . . . Everything is so important to him. Everything is so personal to him. He’s the first one in, last one out. He’s in the weight room constantly; he’s working on his body and getting himself prepared.
“If you’re a young guy and you’re trying to figure out who to go to for guidance on how to make it in this league, all you got to do is go to his locker and just watch. You don’t even have to say a word to him because he’s a man of very few words. Just watch him; his body language and his actions will speak volumes.”
Mosley made the playoffs twice with the Ravens. He’s never played in a conference championship game. He feels the urgency to win big now and knock several things off his bucket list this season.
“I understand the timing,” he said. “As a defense, we’re going into Year 3. The expectations definitely changed, but just the mindset and the way I approach, the way I practice, the way I study, the way I dream about what our future is going to look like in February — that part stays the same for me.
“Just going into Year 3 as a whole, as a team, it’s that time. That window is very small and the clock is starting to tick.”
Mosley knows the history of the Jets all too well. He said his parents were toddlers when the Jets won Super Bowl III. He remains driven to help win another one for the franchise.
“As soon as I signed here, that was my dream, my expectation, to bring a Super Bowl to the New York Jets,’’ he said. “That says a lot: Super Bowl and the New York Jets. Just the history, being the second one, having our name marked down forever, having that legacy and just bringing a championship and a winning culture to a team that’s been losing for a while.
“All those things added up just makes that dream even better when we get to it.”
Al Iannazzone covers the Jets for Newsday after spending nearly two decades on the NBA beat with Knicks and Nets.
