Eric Mangini believes that Aaron Rodgers can be a net positive for the New York Jets, but he believes that the four-time MVP is also proving to be an unnecessary distraction.
A former head coach with the Jets, Mangini’s final season with the franchise in 2008 saw the Jets bring in Brett Favre to help elevate the team.
On a Wednesday appearance on FS1, Mangini told Colin Cowherd that he sees Rodgers as a distraction to the team. The comments from Mangini came after Rodgers fielded a question this week during an interview with WFAN.
The question came from executive producer Al Dukes of the ‘Boomer & Gio’ show. It had nothing to do with football but rather was about the Malaysian flight disappearance from 2014.
“I was really high on Aaron Rodgers going to the Jets, and obviously I went through that experience with Brett Favre going to the Jets when I was there, and I think he can be really good,” Mangini told Cowherd on FS1.
“It’s just – I’m so frustrated with all the other stuff that he’s bringing.”
In a different appearance on FS1 on Wednesday (on First Things First), Mangini questioned the impact of Rodgers not playing in preseason and the message it sent to his teammates.
His experience with Favre, he told Cowherd, was the opposite of what he is seeing with Rodgers and the Jets.
“And Brett was great when we had him, he was, you know, he was part of the team. He was willing to do whatever we asked him to do…he wanted to be, wanted to be treated like everybody else,” Mangini said on ‘The Herd.’
“And with Aaron, it’s always something – it’s mandatory mini cap – you know, that’s just an OTA…the preseason games – that’s not real football. It’s whatever he thinks at the moment is absolutely right and is absolutely the way it should be.
“And then things can’t be as they appear. They have to be some sort of diabolical plot for the deep state to overthrow the government or create world domination like I don’t, I don’t get it. I think he’s bright. I just don’t get why he has to go there. And, you know, everybody’s entitled to their opinion and their thoughts. I just don’t know if this is the most productive thing for them to win football games this year.”
