Aaron Rodgers has only played four downs as a New York Jet. He has, however, done a lot of talking. His recent conversations have centered around his trip to Egypt. Rodgers missed mini-camp to head over and ride a camel. Now, he is at training camp and sat down with WFAN's Boomer and Gio to discuss his vacation.
“It was one of the few places in life where it kind of exceeded the expectations, to be honest,” Rodgers said. “The only other place that was kind of like that was when I went to Augusta [National].”
Safe to say Rodgers enjoyed his vacation. A noted golfer, Rodgers said what everyone says about Augusta: that it blows your expectations out of the water. The Jets must hope that his awe-inspiring trip to Egypt got him in the right headspace to play quarterback in the NFL.
Rodgers is fully recovered from his Achilles injury and is a full participant in training camp. The Jets open their season on Monday Night Football once again, this time on the road against the San Francisco 49ers, Rodgers's hometown team. The Jets once again have their entire season resting on the 40-year-old Rodgers and his relationship with their young skill players. Will it work out in East Rutherford?
Expectations for Aaron Rodgers and the Jets in 2024
The New York Jets finally had massive expectations going into 2023. The entire season crumbled on the MetLife Stadium turf just four plays into the opening game. Rodgers tore his Achilles leaving Zach Wilson as the starting quarterback. Wilson was so bad that Tim Boyle and Trevor Siemian were thrust into the starting role.
Now, the Jets are back at square one. They have Tyrod Taylor as their backup quarterback in case he gets injured, but the future still lies squarely on Rodgers' shoulders. He has been a firey personality at training camp, getting into spats with center Joe Tippmann and wide receiver Garrett Wilson.
All of the off-field distractions must come to an end by the time the season begins. The Jets have a soft schedule after their opening game but will not perform to their expectations without a healthy Rodgers. They have the ninth-best odds to win the Super Bowl on FanDuel because of their soft schedule.
Rodgers' last healthy season in 2022 was not his best. He threw for under 4,000 yards in a full season for the first time since 2010 and threw 12 interceptions, his most since 2008. The Packers went 8-9 and missed the playoffs for the first time in four years. While these numbers are poor for the Packers and Rodgers, it might be enough to get the Jets to the playoffs.
That Packers team did not have Devante Adams, had an aging offensive line, and had a middle-of-the-road defense. With Wilson, a rebuilt line, and a stout defense, these Jets can get by with a just-okay version of Rodgers. In a stacked AFC, the Jets must outduel the Dolphins, Chargers, and Bengals among other Wild Card contenders. They need Aaron Rodgers to do that.
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