Aaron Rodgers. Al Bello/Getty Images
The future looked bright for Aaron Rodgers and the New York Jet at the start of the season — but now the veteran quarterback is left to wonder if he even has a future at all.
Rodgers, 41, and the Jets lost 40-14 to the Buffalo Bills on Sunday, December 29, the team’s 6th loss in 7 games which dropped their overall season record to a wildly disappointing 4-12.
During the CBS broadcast of Sunday’s game, legendary play-by-play analyst Jim Nantz revealed how Rodgers responded when he asked him about his future in New York.
“He looked us right in the eye and said, ‘I really don’t know. I’ll take some time,’” Nantz, 65, said.
Rodgers is still under contract with the Jets through the end of next season. The team could decide to move on from the legendary quarterback, which would come at a great financial burden to the franchise. There’s also a chance Rodgers could simply decide to walk away himself.
After Sunday’s game, Rodgers told reporters the loss was a microcosm of the Jets entire year.
“I mean, it’s kind of like the season, it just got away from us,” he said. “Too many games got away from us. We were moving the ball and then we just hit a wall and that’s kind of been the season.”
The Jets fired head coach Robert Saleh in October after a 2-3 start, but the team has only won two games since under interim head coach Jeff Ulbrich. The team traded for Rodgers’ friend and former Green Bay Packers teammate Davante Adams later that month, but the Jets offense has continued to sputter since the trade.
In short, nothing has helped right the sinking ship.
During an appearance on ESPN’s The Pat McAfee Show on Monday, December 23, Rodgers said the Jets would be his “first choice” if he opts to play next season.
During Aaron Rodgers’ rookie season with the Green Bay Packers, his relationship with teammate Brett Favre needed plenty of defrosting. Rodgers, 41, was drafted 24th overall by the Packers in the 2005 NFL Draft, a surprising tumble for a player who was widely expected to be drafted inside the top 5. While the Packers front […]
“I think there’s a world where they just say, ‘Hey, thank you, we’re going to go in another direction’ on January 6th,” Rodgers told McAfee, 37, referencing the day after the Jets’ regular season ends. “That’s a possibility.”
The Jets close out the regular season on Sunday, January 5, against the Miami Dolphins.
Whatever happens, Rodgers said he isn’t planning on immediately making a decision about his future.
“I’m going to take some time after the year — unless I get released right away,” Rodgers said on a Wednesday, December 18, appearance on The Pat McAfee Show. “But I’ll still take some time whether or not I want to play. I’ll take some time to get away from it, either way.”
