Welcome to the first installment of Run It Back, Loco Mag’s new sports column! My name is Patrick, and I will be your host on this journey through the annals of sports history. Today, we are going to look back on NFL quarterback Aaron Rodgers’ debut with the New York Jets, which happened one year ago this month.
On Sep. 11, 2023, the New York Jets opened the season with a Monday Night Football game against the Buffalo Bills. This game carried a lot of weight for the Jets organization: not only was this game played on the 22nd anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, but it was also New York’s first game with Aaron Rodgers as the team’s starting quarterback.
Wait, Aaron Rodgers? Yes, that Aaron Rodgers.
The long-time Green Bay Packers quarterback arrived in the Big Apple in 2023, being traded from Green Bay after 15 years as the Packers’ starting QB. Rodgers was added to a promising young Jets team that was strong on defense but was in need of a jolt on offense.
In 2022, New York’s defense ranked fourth in the NFL, which was headlined by cornerback Ahmad “Sauce” Gardner, who was named the Associated Press’s Defensive Rookie of the Year Award winner. That same season, wide receiver Garrett Wilson finished as the AP’s Offensive Rookie of the Year, shining as a bright spot on a Jets offense that finished 29th in points with just 296 on the season.
The quarterback position was a point of weakness for New York, as the Jets’ QB room consisted of 2021 No. 2 pick Zach Wilson, a 37-year-old Joe Flacco, and a career backup in Mike White. A 39-year-old Rodgers was not doing New York any favors in the age department, but the team’s front office saw the veteran’s expertise as an asset. After all, Rodgers was not far removed from winning back-to-back MVP awards.
In the season opener, Rodgers invigorated the MetLife Stadium crowd during his on-field entrance, carrying the American flag while rocking the Jets’ “Legacy White” uniform, which resembled the team’s 1980s getup. Even though franchise legend Joe Namath gave Rodgers permission to wear his retired No. 12, Rodgers reverted to No. 8, his number from his collegiate career at the University of California–Berkeley.
In spite of Rodgers’ age, New Yorkers still had hope that maybe this moment could be the beginning of a great season for both the player and the team alike.
That hope lasted for about five minutes.
With protection from the Jets’ offensive line collapsing, Bills defensive end Leonard Floyd sacked Rodgers on New York’s first possession of the season. Rodgers did not return to the field, throwing one incompletion before being ruled out for the remainder of the game.
The next day, Rodgers was diagnosed with a ruptured Achilles tendon. Despite being activated off the injured reserve list late in the season, Rodgers ultimately did not see any more on-field action for the rest of 2023.
Zach Wilson took over at QB in the opener, helping the Jets to a 22-16 overtime victory over Buffalo. However, New York went on to lose 10 of 16 to finish the season, losing five consecutive games during this stretch. In the midst of this skid, the Bills exacted revenge on the Jets, defeating New York 32-6 in Week 11.
The Jets ended the season 7-10, finishing with double-digit losses for the fourth consecutive year. As a result, New York’s 12-year postseason appearance drought increased to 13 years.
Would you be surprised if I told you that a similar story unfolded with this team 15 years prior?
Let’s just say that history has a funny albeit twisted way of repeating itself.
In 2008, Brett Favre—Rodgers’ predecessor and former teammate in Green Bay—was traded to the Jets after a lengthy retirement saga. Favre helped New York to an 8-3 record through the first 12 weeks of the season, going 245-for-347 passing with 20 touchdown passes and 13 interceptions.
Over the last five weeks, however, the Jets fell out of the AFC playoff race, going 1-4 to close out the campaign. Favre—who had turned 39 earlier in the season—was really showing his age, throwing nine interceptions and just two TDs over New York’s last five games. In the end, the Jets finished 9-7, missing the postseason by two games. As it turned out, Favre had been playing with a torn biceps tendon in his throwing shoulder during the latter portion of the season.
The following year, in 2009, Favre, who had since become the starter for the Minnesota Vikings, helped lead the team to the NFC’s second playoff seed. Favre was 40 by that point, ending his playing career a year later at the age of 41 after suffering a sprained shoulder and a concussion.
Rodgers, who will be turning 41 in just a few months, will face a similar challenge as he attempts to prove to the Jets that he is still a decent quarterback at his age. Whether New York reaches the 2024 playoffs will heavily depend on Rodgers’ performance, which will likely be good—provided he stays healthy—but not quite as good as it was during his Packers years.
If your favorite sports team has recently signed an aging, but still somewhat effective player, do not get your hopes up for said player to have an MVP-caliber performance. They may have had a productive season even one or two years ago, but if you are relying on a player in their mid-to-late 30s to be the player that they were a decade prior, you are setting yourself up for disappointment.
