2024-09-20 20:05:03
Aaron Rodgers zipped passes between defenders. Aaron Rodgers exploited matchups and extended plays with his legs and made everyone on his offense better. Aaron Rodgers finally looked like Aaron Freakin’ Rodgers, the four-time MVP and future Hall of Fame quarterback worthy of the decision to hand his the keys to the Jets franchise.
He did not look like that player last season, of course, during the four snaps before he tore his Achilles tendon. But he also did not look like that player as the Jets split their first two games in his second attempt as the franchise savoir.
Oh, sure, he looked … fine. The Jets did not go all-in on Rodgers for a merely good quarterback. They did not bring him here in that April 2023 trade with the Green Bay Packers in the hopes that they’d get an upgrade over Zach Wilson. A JUGS machine would be better than the turnover-prone former No. 2 overall pick who was like an anchor on this team’s hopes.
“I expect greatness every time I step on the field,” Rodgers had said before this season, and maybe that was too much to expect for a 40-year-old quarterback given the wear and tear of 20 NFL seasons on his right arm.
But approaching greatness?
That’s what the Jets got from their quarterback on Thursday night in a 24-3 victory over the New England Patriots. Rodgers completed 27 of 35 passes for 281 yards and two touchdowns, and if you want to add the qualifier that the Patriots are a bad football team, go right ahead. Jets diehards will note how many times this offense has made bad defenses look like the ‘85 Bears.
Nobody with a green jersey hanging in their closet with names like Sanchez or Tebow or Nagle or any of the failed quarterbacks should overthink this one. They should simply enjoy it. This is what good quarterback play looks like, Jets fans. This was the missing ingredient for an otherwise top-notch team. Worry about whether it will last another day.
That it came against the Patriots made it even more special. For most of this century, New England had the player who defined quarterback greatness, and while Tom Brady packed his bags for Tampa and then the TV booth a long time ago, the memories linger. The Patriots had won 39 of the last 47 games in this series, after all, and eight straight in this building.
The mystique of the Patriots Way is a distant memory now that Bill Belichick has his own TV gig hanging out with Eli Manning. Few rosters in the NFL have as little top-line talent as the Patriots, who started a quarterback in Jacoby Brissett who a placeholder for the No. 3 overall draft pick, Drake Maye, waiting in the wings.
The Jets have to beat teams like this to have any chance at a special season. For Rodgers, though, this was more than just one of 17 games on the schedule. This was his first time stepping onto the MetLife Stadium field since that disastrous opening night 373 days ago. He needed a performance to erase the memory of that moment, and maybe prove something to this fan base.
He got it. He found old pal Allen Lazard for a 10-yard touchdown pass in the first quarter as the Jets used an up-tempo attack to keep New England off balance. He zipped a 22-yard pass down a seam in the defense to tight end Tyler Conklin to set up a second touchdown drive as he completed 13 of his first 15 passes.
His best throw of the night went for just 2 yards in the box score. He left his feet as he whipped a pass to the goal line for Garrett Wilson, putting the ball just over the outstretched hand of the cornerback for the Jets third touchdown. It was the first time Rodgers had ever thrown a touchdown pass to a receiver drafted in the first-round, and the Jets can only hope it is the beginning of a productive Rodgers-Wilson partnership.
Then again, it is clear Rodgers will not be playing favorites. He completed at least two passes to eight different targets, and if you’re nitpicking, most of those were short throws. Rodgers tried to stretch the field a couple times and failed, including once when Wilson had a step on his defender. Hey, the guy isn’t perfect.
He is, however, better than any quarterback that the Jets have had in years. Aaron Rodgers was, at long last, Aaron Freakin’ Rodgers on Thursday night. The fans at MetLife Stadium can only hope this version sticks around for a while.
