Time is now for Aaron Rodgers, Jets to live up to the hype
Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers (8) watches play against the New York Giants during the first half of a NFL preseason football game in East Rutherford, N.J., Saturday, August 26, 2022 Credit: Noah K. Murray
Aaron Rodgers’ trade to the Jets sent shock waves throughout the NFL and shook up the entire Jets franchise and fan base.
The excitement is at an all-time high for a team that has missed the playoffs for 12 consecutive years.
For the first time in more than a decade, the Jets believe that they can compete for a Super Bowl.
“We know what we have in here,” rising star receiver Garrett Wilson said. “Now it’s time to go show the world.”
The show begins on Monday Night Football when the Jets play the Buffalo Bills.
It should be an emotionally charged night at MetLife Stadium. It’s the anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks. It’s also Rodgers’ Jets debut against one of their biggest rivals.
The Bills have won the AFC East title the past three years, but the Jets believe they’ve built a team to end that reign. The irony is teams could be coming after the Jets to knock them off their hype horse.
The Jets were the talk of sports radio and TV shows. They were given six prime-time games. They were featured on “Hard Knocks.”
They haven’t shied away from any of it.
The Jets have openly talked about competing for a Super Bowl. Cornerback D.J. Reed said the Jets’ defense — a top-four unit last season — could be “historical” and as dominant as the 1985 Bears.
Now it’s time to stop talking and start playing.
“We’ve gotten a lot of attention before we even did ‘Hard Knocks,’ ” Rodgers said. “Then we did ‘Hard Knocks.’ So there’s some jealousy for sure. There’s a lot of people either jumping on the bandwagon or jumping on the other side.”
The Jets started 7-4 last year but lost their last six games. Quarterback play was the biggest reason for the collapse, and they fixed that in a major way.
Rodgers is a four-time MVP and future Hall of Famer who will turn 40 this year but still has the fire and desire to play and win Super Bowls.
Rodgers, who spent his first 18 seasons playing for the Green Bay Packers, expects to have “butterflies” in his first game as a Jet. The change has been good for him and his new team.
“It’ll be exciting,” Rodgers said. “Monday night football is great. You play in the league long enough, you want a lot of 1 o’clock games. [But] you don’t grow up dreaming about playing 1 o’clock, you dream about playing Monday Night Football, Sunday Night Football.”
Rodgers has displayed impressive leadership in practice, and everyone is following him. On Game Day, his intensity goes up and has an even higher standard.
“He is very competitive. I think that is the nice way to put it,” said new offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett, who worked with Rodgers in Green Bay. “Everything matters to him. On how people line up, how the play is called, it is a very high standard, and I think that makes us all better.”
The Jets have given Rodgers weapons. They signed four-time Pro Bowl back Dalvin Cook as well as receivers Allen Lazard, Mecole Hardman and Randall Cobb. They join Wilson, running back Breece Hall — who is returning from an ACL tear — and tight ends Tyler Conklin, C.J. Uzomah and Jeremy Ruckert.
The one weakness could be the offensive line. Right tackle Mekhi Becton has missed the last 33 games with knee injuries and hasn’t played a full game since 2020. Left tackle Duane Brown is returning from shoulder surgery and hardly practiced.
Offensive line coach Keith Carter said his group has a definite “sense of urgency” to make sure they protect Rodgers.
“Whenever you have a quarterback of his caliber, you are very conscious that you want to protect him and make sure we’re doing our job to keep him out there for the entire year,” Carter said.
The defense again will be led by linebacker C.J. Mosley and tackle Quinnen Williams. The defensive line is the strength of the team. As many as nine defensive starters returned, including lockdown cornerback Sauce Gardner, edge rusher Carl Lawson and Reed.
That’s another reason expectations are so high for the Jets — and they know the time is now.
“I look at it as we have a small window,” Reed said. “When you have a team like this, when you have a great defense, when you have a Hall of Fame quarterback, when you have a well-built roster, you have to take advantage of this.
“These teams don’t happen every year, so we really have to maximize opportunity right now.”
Al Iannazzone covers the Jets for Newsday after spending nearly two decades on the NBA beat with Knicks and Nets.
