Aaron Rodgers, Davante Adams rediscover old magic as Jets finally win a close one
Jets wide receiver Davante Adams reacts as he leaves the field with quarterback Aaron Rodgers after an NFL game against the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday in Jacksonville, Fla. Credit: AP/Phelan M. Ebenhack
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Aaron Rodgers and Davante Adams put on a show on Sunday in a game between two teams fighting for draft position.
The two former Green Bay teammates, who reunited with the Jets, looked like the Rodgers and Adams of old in the second half of the game.
The Jets beat the Jacksonville Jaguars 32-25, at EverBank Stadium. The game was decided when Sauce Gardner picked off Mac Jones with about 40 seconds left at the Jets' 13. It was Gardner’s first interception since 2022.
Rodgers threw for 289 yards and three touchdowns. Adams caught nine passes for 198 yards and two scores.
The Jets improved to 4-10 as they snapped a four-game losing streak. The Jaguars are 3-11.
This was the eighth time this season that Rodgers had the ball in the final minutes with a chance to tie or give the Jets the lead. It’s the first time the Jets won
With the score tied at 25, the Jets took over at their 30 with 1:51 left. Rodgers threw incomplete on first and second down. Adams made a brilliant over-the-shoulder catch on third down for 23 yards.
The Jets needed another third-down conversion and they got it. Rodgers threw it to Adams for a 41-yard catch-and-run. He was brought down at the 1. Breece Hall punched it in on the next play with 1:05 left as the Jaguars allowed him to score.
It was a risky move to not take a knee and just take a chip shot field goal, especially the way the Jets’ defense has squandered late-game leads. But Gardner got the big takeaway.
Garrett Wilson had three catches for 56 yards and a touchdown. Wilson had an animated exchange on the sideline with receivers coach Shawn Jefferson in the third quarter.
Hall returned after missing last week’s game with a knee injury. He didn’t have his usual burst and ran for 30 yards on nine carries.
Jones, the former Patriots quarterback, was 31-for-46 for 294 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. Rookie receiver Brian Thomas Jr. had 10 grabs for 105 yards and two scores.
Trailing 22-17, Rodgers began a drive at the Jets' 13 with 4:19 left. On the fourth play, Rodgers connected with Adams deep across the middle, and he took it 71 yards for the touchdown. Adams also caught the two-point conversion with 3:24 left to put the Jets up 25-22.
The Jaguars started the next drive on their 33. On third-and-2 from the 41, Parker Washington caught a short pass and took it 29 yards to the Jets’ 30. Jones overthrew Thomas on third down. Cam Little kicked a 43-yard field goal to tie it with 1:51 to go.
Al Iannazzone covers the Jets for Newsday after spending nearly two decades on the NBA beat with Knicks and Nets.
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