ESPN host Shannon Sharpe slammed his co-host, Dan Orlovsky on First Take, following a London showdown between the New York Jets and the Minnesota Vikings regarding Aaron Rodgers.
“You notice how he (Orlovsky) says ‘the offense.’ I was told that they were bringing a guy in,” Sharpe said. The offense was inept when they had Zach Wilson, the offense was inept when they had Mike White. It was inept when they had Joe Flacco. It was inept when they had Sam Darnold. I was told by somebody who plays the position up here that they’re bringing a guy in. Now they’re losing. Why are they losing DO?”
The Jets have had an underwhelming start to the season. They're currently 2-3 and dropped their second consecutive game. Rodgers threw three interceptions, some of which looked incomprehensible. Although the Vikings are a well-constructed football team, the loss raises a multitude of concerns.
Are Aaron Rodgers and the Jets in trouble after Shannon Sharpe's comments?
Besides the interceptions, the Jets offense looked flat in the loss. They're 17th in passing yards, have 11 total touchdowns on the year, and are middle of the pack in interceptions with four. While the numbers themselves aren't bad, the Jets brought in Rodgers to solve the quarterback issue.
A carousel of Mike White, Joe Flacco, and Zach Wilson didn't cut it. When they acquired the former MVP, thoughts circulated about the Jets winning a Super Bowl. However, a 2-3 start isn't what they ordered. Although Orlovsky mentioned how he can't comment on Rodgers because of Orlovsky being a backup, Sharpe didn't hold back.
“Talk about the quarterback play… three interceptions again, 53 completion percentage last week, 57 this week,” Sharpe said. “No, I’m not going to let you blame it on the offense, because you didn’t blame it on the offense when they had those other quarterbacks. You blamed the quarterback. But you want to stay in good graces and you won’t call Aaron Rodgers out. He’s playing awful, you know it, everybody in New York knows it, and everybody around the NFL knows it. He’s playing terribly, call it as you see it.”
While he has performed at an MVP level the majority of his career, Rodgers is still coming off an Achilles injury that sidelined him throughout the 2023-24 season. At age 40, he may not be how he was 10 years ago. Regardless, fans, and just about everyone have lofty expectations for the Jets. As the quarterback deals with an ankle injury, people are hoping for Rodgers to find the fountain of youth if they want to go back to premier contention.