Ralph Vacchiano
NFL Reporter
FLORHAM PARK, N.J. — Aaron Rodgers unleashed a throw on Wednesday afternoon that seemed to travel back in time. He looked effortless as he leaned onto his back foot and fired the ball 55 yards in the air, dropping it right into Garrett Wilson’s hands.
He looked like he did in his prime. And he made it easy to see why the Jets still believe he’s the one who will lead them out of their five decades of Super Bowl-less misery.
Or at least that’s what they desperately want to believe.
“Like I learned last year,” Sauce Gardner said after practice, “things can be taken away from you at the snap of a finger.”
That snap, of course, occurred just four plays into last season when Rodgers ruptured his left Achilles tendon and destroyed the New York Jets’ hopes and dreams. He had just famously emerged from his darkness retreat and agreed to lead the star-crossed franchise into the spotlight. And just like that, the lights went out on them once again.
Now he’s 40 years old and trying to make what would be an unprecedented comeback from such a serious injury at his age. And he’s doing it against the backdrop of an all-or-nothing season, knowing there isn’t time for any kind of long-term plan. If Rodgers can’t recapture his old form, if he can’t drag the Jets on a real run at their first championship in 56 long, agonizing seasons, the consequences for everyone in his orbit could be dire.
“Well, I think if I don’t do what I know I’m capable of doing,” Rodgers said back in May, “we’re all probably going to be out of here.”
He’s not wrong. And both Jets general manager Joe Douglas and head coach Robert Saleh surely know it. They are entering their fourth season together and have lost double-digit games in all of them. Saleh’s three-year record is a miserable 18-33. Douglas’ teams are 27-56 in his six years at the helm. They’ve built a Top 5 defense. They’ve got star skill players like Wilson and running…
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Publish date : 2024-08-22 17:49:55
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