The excitement the New York Jets and their fans had about the 2023 NFL season snapped very quickly along with future Hall of Fame quarterback Aaron Rodgers’ Achilles tendon before their first offensive series of the year was even over. Since then, the season has been the usual predicament for the Jets — moments of faint hope surrounded by longer stretches of ineptitude.
They hold a 4-7 record after Friday’s blowout defeat at the hands of the Miami Dolphins. Their offense has been embarrassingly awful, and they now have virtually no chance of breaking their 12-year string of missing the playoffs, which is an NFL high.
Rodgers recently made noise about attempting a return sometime in December, which would be unthinkable according to medical science. He then said that if New York was out of playoff contention, it could alter his plans.
But now, it looks like he doesn’t care about making the playoffs. Rather, his goal seems to be more about himself than his team.
“Jay Glazer of Fox Sports reported on Thursday that Rodgers no longer is concerned about the Jets’ ability to contend for a playoff spot,” wrote Ely Allen of Pro Football Rumors. “Glazer claims that, even if the Jets are out of the playoff race, Rodgers “still wants to show he was able to come back faster from that Achilles tear — faster than pretty much any quarterback ever.” Rodgers is so dead set on this goal that he isn’t even aiming to return to full form. He doesn’t feel the need to be able to escape the pocket and scramble, he just wants to be able to say he was able to come back into a game this season and play some form of the quarterback position.”
NFL News & Rumors: Aaron Rodgers, New York Jets Updates
Reportedly, Rodgers wants to be able to start practicing again by his birthday, which will be on Dec. 2. He would like to return to game action by mid-month, which would place his return on Dec. 17, when the Jets will visit the Dolphins.
Skeptics may feel that this is, according to them, another case of Rodgers putting his own agenda ahead of that of the team. Conventional medical wisdom seems to say his best bet is to sit out the rest of the season, fully rehab his injury and allow his team to make necessary upgrades in order to have a shot at contention next year.
New York’s offensive line is very poor, which makes a hasty return by Rodgers seem even riskier. Then there is there question of how well he will even be able to play, whether he returns sooner or later, given the immense wear and tear he has after 15 full seasons as a starting QB.
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