This Whole Season Has Drastically Changed For The New York Jets
To be honest, I don’t even know where to begin. The worst-case scenario that could have happened this season for New York, has happened. Aaron Rodgers was taken out of their Week One game against the Bills Monday night after playing only four snaps in a Jets uniform.
Rodgers did not return to the game and the Jets feared the worst for the ten-time pro bowler. Well, New York’s fears became a reality Tuesday morning when an MRI confirmed that Rodgers’ tore his left Achilles, ending his season.
What Does Rodgers’ Future Look Like?
This has to be one of the most devastating injuries to a sports team in quite a while. The amount of attention and hype around Aaron Rodgers and this Jets team during the off-season was something to remember. But that’s all it is now, a memory. After all that we’ve seen leading up to this season, including training camp through the Hard Knocks lens, amounts to almost nothing now without the man that was supposed to bring it all together.
It’s a tough time for the fanbase and for the team, but I also can’t imagine how Aaron Rodgers is feeling. We saw him multiple times this off-season preaching about how happy and rejuvenated he’s felt with his decision to continue his football career past Green Bay. To have it end like this is the definition of tragic.
While we won’t know for sure until some point during the off-season, I can’t imagine Rodgers wanting to go out this way. He’s the type of guy I think would like to go out on his own terms, rather than allowing an injury to make the decision for him. But sometimes it’s not the player's choice. God forbid he gets a recommendation from the doctors that playing isn’t the best decision, only then will it have to become a serious consideration for him.
As For The Jets, What Now?
With 16 games still remaining on the schedule, New York has no choice but to move on despite losing the player that they based this whole season around. Signing Nathaniel Hackett as their new offensive coordinator, and bringing in wide receivers Allen Lazard and Randall Cobb were all part of the plan for Rodgers’ transition to the Big Apple. Now it seems like the Jets have entered a time machine and with the exception of a few players, they are the same group that they were last year, a good team without a quarterback.
The Jets have made it clear that Zach Wilson will be the team’s quarterback moving forward as they begin their search in adding a veteran. Zach is the best man for the job as of now but that’s not saying a whole lot. We can’t expect much from the third-year quarterback and can only hope to be surprised.
The Jets did find a way to win Monday night's contest vs. the Buffalo Bills as they start the season 1-0. They have a very tough schedule leading up to their bye week as they are set to face the Cowboys, Chiefs, and Eagles. New York will have to tread water by relying on their defense with the hopes of gaining some stability at the quarterback position along the way.
New York searching for QBs does not necessarily mean Zach will be pulled once they find one. Whoever this new quarterback is will need time to ramp up, especially if they sign a free agent rather than acquiring someone through trade. It’s Zach’s job to lose now, but the Jets need to be prepared if the young QB does not look improved or god forbid gets injured as well.
In terms of free agent quarterbacks, I wouldn't mind New York looking into Colt McCoy, Carson Wentz, and maybe even Matt Ryan. No one is going to be perfect, they all have their flaws, but potentially taking a chance on one of these guys may prove to be worth it for where the Jets stand now.
As for acquiring a quarterback through trade, the only player I like enough to give up some draft capital right now is Saints QB Jameis Winston. He turns the ball over at a high rate but he's proven throughout his career that he can sling it and move the ball down the field.
The Aaron Rodgers show in New York is now going to have to wait another full season for its debut, and if Rodgers came into this season with a chip on his shoulder, we can only hope that next year’s chip will only be bigger after all that has happened.
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