New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers recently got some attention for saying that this year's training camp was “much harder,” and head coach Robert Saleh responded to those comments, saying that he thinks sports have gone too far when it comes to coddling players, and that hard work is required to be ready for the season.
“We're not trying to revisit the Junction Boys, but at the same time, this country club style that's kind of taking on all of sport — not just football but all of sport — there's a fine line. They've got to be ready to play football,” Robert Saleh said, according to Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk.
The “Junction Boys” reference is a callback to Texas A&M football players who went through a brutal training camp in 100-degree heat in 1954. Obviously, Saleh is not coaching his Jets that hard in training camp, but he does have his players work hard enough to be ready for the season.
Aaron Rodgers has not played in the preseason after suffering a torn Achilles in Week 1 last year, and it is unclear whether or not he will play in the preseason finale on Saturday against the New York Giants. Either way, it appears that Rodgers and the Jets have gotten good work in this summer. They had joint practice sessions with the Washington Commanders and Carolina Panthers before each preseason game, and they have one session with the Giants on Wednesday as well.
Jets look to start season fast
The Jets will need to be prepared for the start of the season, as they will start off with a tough test right away on the road against the San Francisco 49ers in Week 1 on Monday Night Football. If the Jets are able to give the 49ers a tough game and maybe even win, it would be a great indicator for things to come as the schedule eases up after that matchup. It would be a tall order to ask Rodgers to perform flawlessly on the road against that defense after essentially not playing in 2023.
After the opening game against the 49ers, New York has easier matchups against the Tennessee Titans, New England Patriots, Denver Broncos and Minnesota Vikings before a big division matchup against the Buffalo Bills. It will be interesting to see now New York fares in the early going. Saleh hopes that the hard preparation results in a fast start for the JEts.
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