If the New York Jets were hoping Aaron Rodgers would ignite the offense in his return from a ruptured Achilles tendon and become the catalyst for a team that can push to compete in the loaded AFC, that’s not the version of the former MVP quarterback who’s taken the field so far in 2024.
Through two games, the Jets’ offense has been a series of fits and starts but at its most effective when running backs Breece Hall Braelon Allen are the focal points.
New York’s two young running backs have combined for 157 rushing yards and two scores, accounting for 29 percent of the Jets’ total offense amid a 1-1 start.
NFL Executive Wonders How Much New York Jets QB Aaron Rodgers Has Left
After getting drubbed by the San Francisco 49ers in the opener, Rodgers and the Jets survived, 24-17, against the turnover plagued Tennessee Titans to pull to .500 after two games.
While Rodgers has been an upgrade over New York’s revolving door of poor quarterback play in 2023, the 40-year-old has completed 60.8 percent of his passes for 343 yards with. three touchdowns to one interception but offered little resemblance to the quarterback who won the 2021 NFL MVP award.
According to one ESPN NFL insider Jeremy Fowler, one league executive has noticed Rodgers’ decline.
“More of a point guard distributing at this stage,” a veteran AFC personnel man told Fowler. “Not the magician he used to be.”
It is still early in the season, but whether Rodgers can regain his ability to improvise and make plays off schedule off an Achilles injury remains to be seen. So, too, does whether the Jets need him to in order to make a run in the AFC East.
