Jets captain reacts to expected Aaron Rodgers development

It became clear long before it was reported on Super Bowl weekend that the New York Jets will move on from quarterback Aaron Rodgers that an offseason divorce was the inevitable end of his two-year tenure with the franchise. 

During a Monday appearance on New York television station Fox 5, Jets linebacker and team captain C.J. Mosley addressed the Rodgers situation. 

“We tried to do something special,” Mosley said about the Jets acquiring Rodgers, as shared by Jeremy Bergman of the NFL’s website. “Injuries took part in that, took away a lot of time. …He was a leader no matter what when he came into the locker room, when he was with us this year. Nothing but respect for him to come back from the Achilles, 40-plus years old. I know the wins and losses can get in the way of a lot of things that you can accomplish, but there’s no reason for him to leave New York with his head down ’cause I know he gave us his all.” 

Throughout the past two years, much was made about alleged distractions that Rodgers may have caused for the Jets via interviews and by skipping the club’s two-day mandatory minicamp this past June. As Mosley referenced, however, Rodgers’ body betraying him is the biggest reason he was unable to help Gang Green end the longest active playoff drought in the four major North American sports leagues that’s at 14 consecutive seasons and counting. 

The torn Achilles Rodgers suffered in September 2023 essentially cost him that entire season. He then dealt with injuries to both his knees, a low ankle sprain and a hamstring issue this past fall along with organization instability caused by Jets owner Woody Johnson firing head coach Robert Saleh when the club was 2-3.

Despite all that went wrong for the Jets since September 2023, multiple members of the locker room made it known earlier this winter they still believed Rodgers could take the club to where it wants to go later this year. It’s unknown if the 41-year-old will look to continue playing elsewhere, but it’s worth noting that at least one NFC pro director thinks Rodgers still possesses “high-end” arm talent. 

Mosley seemed to back that take on Monday. 

“We’ve seen him sling the ball around,” Mosley added. “He can definitely still play ball. He was real mobile towards the end of the year, so that was fun to watch. That definitely got the sideline going. Like I said, it’s up to him, but I think he’s definitely still got a year or two in the tank. That’s what he said before everything started.” 

It’s understandable a new Jets regime that had nothing to do with landing Rodgers wants a fresh start with its own QB1. If, however, he turns the clock back with a different club next season, Johnson once again could be viewed as a villain in the eyes of Jets fans.