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This time last year the hopes and dreams of New York Jets fans were dashed when 10-time Pro Bowl quarterback Aaron Rodgers ruptured his achilles tendon just four snaps into his debut with the team. The injury kept the four-time MVP out of action for the remainder of the 2023 season. Twelve long months later, Rodgers made his long-awaited return to the field and, despite getting through the game healthy, his Jets were handed a brutal 32-19 defeat by the San Francisco 49ers.
Never one to miss an opportunity to pile on, professional take haver Colin Cowherd weighed in on Rodgers and the Jets in the wake of their Monday Night Football misstep.
“Let’s just talk about the Jets offense. This is a defensive head coach, Aarons’ past his prime, off surgery and Nat Hackett is suboptimal,” Cowherd said via The Volume on X. “Let’s just be honest about this. Aaron right now is not in his prime. He’s not as big, strong and athletic as a Josh Allen or a Justin Herbert. He doesn’t move like a Kyler Murray, Lamar or Patrick Mahomes. I watched them tonight and I think we have overvalued how good Aaron Rodgers is,” Cowherd opined.
There is no denying that Rodgers is a 40-year-old quarterback entering his 20th season in the NFL and coming off of a major injury. It’s also worth noting that the Jets were playing a 49ers team that went to the Super Bowl last season and lost in overtime to the Kansas City Chiefs by three points. San Francisco is a talented team, with or without superstar running back Christian McCaffrey.
It was a hard landing for Aaron Rodgers’ Jets in week one
The Jets have also yet to fully integrate newly signed wide receiver Mike Williams, who should provide another big bodied wideout capable of stretching the field and making contested grabs for Rodgers when he’s fully recovered from the ACL tear that cost him nearly the entire 2023 season.
While it was a disappointing debut for Rodgers and the Jets, not every talking head went straight to despair. Troy Aikman, who called the Jets-49ers game, believes New York will improve as the season progresses based on the team’s talent level. And “defensive head coach” Robert Saleh vowed that the Jets would “get that s**t fixed.” So perhaps better days are ahead for New York.
Of course, Cowherd isn’t buying it. “I just don't think this Jets team is gonna win shootouts. This offense, there’s just some limitations here. I mean Aaron had his fastball early in the game but they just… they don’t scare you,” he said on The Volume.
For his part, an understandably rusty Rodgers still considers the Jets contenders. The four-time All Pro hopes to play San Francisco again with a championship on the line. It would seem that football fans wouldn’t mind a future matchup as the Jets-49ers game brought in an audience of over 20 million, making it the second-highest viewed Week One game in Monday Night Football history.
