With the Jets finally getting Aaron Rodgers Monday, it’s full speed ahead for a potential run to Super Bowl LVIII in Las Vegas in February. The Jets made a statement or two with this trade. Here are a few takeaways from the Jets acquiring Rodgers.
1. Woody Johnson and the Jets want to win and they want to win now
The Jets learned in 2022 that they have a roster that is ready to compete and ready to win. They drafted both the Offensive and Defensive Rookies of the Year in Garrett Wilson and Sauce Gardner. They have an elite defensive tackle in Quinnen Williams and an elite offensive lineman in Alijah Vera-Tucker. There was talent all over the place last season…except for the quarterback position.
The poor quarterback play in 2022, led by Zach Wilson, pretty much forced the Jets’ hand this offseason. They targeted Rodgers and let all other options be damned. Sure, they talked to Derek Carr, but they made it clear Carr was Option B. New York stuck their guns and landed Option A and now they are ready to win. Anything less is a major disappoint.
2. Credit the Jets for trying to fix the problem of blowing the No. 2 pick
The reason the Jets had to go out and acquire Rodgers is because their No. 2 pick from just two years backfired big time. Zach Wilson struggled as a rookie and somehow got even worse in 2022. Wilson was one of the worst quarterbacks last season. The Jets had no choice but to find an answer because they knew they had an opportunity to win but their quarterback was severely holding them back.
The worst-kept secret this offseason was that the Jets were targeting a veteran quarterback. They couldn’t come right out and mention Rodgers because he was still under contract with the Packers. But the writing was on the wall. The Jets did all they could to get Rodgers and, just as important, fix their mistake of botching the No. 2 overall pick.
Could they still fix Wilson? Maybe. Time will tell. But that’s not the focus right now.
3. The Jets now have a bright spotlight on them
The Jets haven’t had much of a target on their backs or been in the national spotlight much over the past decade. There hasn’t been a need to. They weren’t exactly scaring anyone. With Rodgers and their roster, they’re going to keep opposing offensive and defensive coordinators up all night and they’re going to be a bigger talk nationally. Between Rodgers, Garrett Wilson, Breece Hall, Sauce Gardner, Quinnen Williams, just to name a few, the excitement and expectations in Florham Park are the highest they’ve been in years. Expect to see them plenty in primetime and in the late-Sunday afternoon window in 2023.
4. The AFC East might be the most exciting and competitive division in 2023
The days of the AFC East being a foregone conclusion and not much of a race even before the season started are over. This division is going to be a battle all season long and you can make a case for at least three of the teams in the division.
Even just the excitement surrounding the quarterbacks in the division is high. You now have Rodgers in New York, Josh Allen in Buffalo and Tua Tagovailoa in Miami. Is there still hope for Mac Jones in New England? Maybe Bill O’Brien can get something out of him. Still, this is at least a three-horse race.
In fact, the top three are all pretty close in terms of betting odds in the division. Over at DraftKings, the Bills are currently +130 to win the AFC East, followed by the Jets at +225 and then the Dolphins at +300. New England is down at +800.
The NFC East will still be very good, the AFC West could be better if Russell Wilson gets back to his old ways and the AFC North is always a weekly battle. But there’s now something about the AFC East and the quality of the teams and the quarterbacks that will make that division must-see TV in 2023. Expect plenty of national games within that division, especially when the Jets play the Bills.
