One of the most highly-anticipated matchups in Week 1 of the NFL season was the clash between the San Francisco 49ers and the New York Jets on Monday Night Football. Many people wanted to tune in to see the return of Aaron Rodgers after his achilles injury in 2023, and also to check out how the 49ers would respond after their heartbreaking Super Bowl loss.
In fact, the first edition of Monday Night Football in 2024 was one of the most-watched editions ever in Week 1, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.
“Monday night’s Jets-49ers game averaged 20.5 million viewers, making it Monday Night Football’s second-most-watched Week 1 matchup in ESPN’s 19 season history of airing MNF,” Schefter wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
This spike in viewership continues a recent trend of ESPN dominating the ratings in the Week 1 Monday night time slot since bringing in the former FOX duo of Joe Buck and Troy Aikman in the broadcast booth. ESPN's three most-watched Monday Night Football openers have all come in the last three seasons since adding Buck and Aikman, with Lisa Salters doing the sideline reporting.
Where the Jets struggled in Week 1 defeat vs. 49ers
The Jets showed promising signs early in their season opener against the 49ers on Monday night, but a couple of weaknesses did them in as the game went on.
First, let's start with the elephant in the room. Aaron Rodgers looked pretty good in his first full game as a Jet and his first game back from injury, but he still isn't all the way back. Rodgers' mobility, an underrated part of his game, was basically gone. While he is still mentally sharp enough to navigate the pocket, he didn't have the same quickness that he did in his Green Bay days. Regardless, the 40-year old quarterback can still spin it, and showed off his elite accuracy throughout the night.
On a more concerning note, the Jets struggled up front on both sides of the ball. Robert Saleh's defense couldn't stop the run at all on Monday night, even without 49ers star Christian McCaffrey in the fold. Instead, backup Jordan Mason had a carer night with 147 yards and a score on 28 carries.
The Jets' offensive line struggled to holdup throughout the night as well. The running game, led by Breece Hall, struggled to get going and finished with just 68 total yards on the ground. In the passing game, the Niners pass rush only dropped Rodgers for a sack one time, but they consistently were disruptive and moved the veteran quarterback off of his spot.
There's no need to sound the alarm bells yet. The 49ers are still the team to beat in the NFC and look like they're on track to be one of the top teams in the NFL once again. It would be wise to give these new-look Jets a few weeks before anyone starts hitting the panic button.
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