Jets’ Aaron Rodgers to stick around beyond 2024 after ‘lost’ season? ‘The future is very bright in N.J.’

After sustaining a torn Achilles on the fourth play of his debut season with his new team, quarterback Aaron Rodgers of the Jets maintained the dream for over three months. However, on Tuesday, he appeared to acknowledge what was certain: Rodgers’ comeback attempt appears to be finished, after the Jets were eliminated from playoff contention on Sunday.

During his weekly paid visit on ESPN’s The Pat McAfee Show, Aaron Rodgers didn’t explicitly state as much, but he made it apparent when asked if 2024 would be the 40-year-old’s final season with the Jets.

“I don’t believe so,” Rodgers remarked. “I feel like I have a kind of rekindled love and excitement for the game since being here, and everything has been incredible… I don’t think next year will be my last year because I wanted at least two years, and I feel like this year is kind of a lost year now that I only played a few snaps and couldn’t go out there and prove what I’m capable of and see what we’re capable of as a team.

With just over a month remaining in the 2025 season, Rodgers even made a suggestion that he would stay with the Jets. He would turn 42 at that point. He stated that he has confidence in his ability to play at a high level into old age because of his quick recovery from the Achilles injury.

“I’ve got some amazing people around me that have been supporting me more intensely with my functional training and nutrition,” Rodgers stated. “It’s crazy, but I feel like I can play longer and be more productive into my 40s. When I was 40, I thought I would be sitting on a couch somewhere.” However, at forty, I want to be a starter, I would like to be a starter at 41, not at 40. My goal is to get as much as possible from this body.

He mentioned all three of them by name and referred to coach Robert Saleh as a “phenomenal” coach, despite the criticism that he, general manager Joe Douglas, and offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett have received as the Jets have lost six of their last seven games and are no longer in contention for the playoffs without Aaron Rodgers.

Rodgers declared, “I have faith in the leadership that we have here.” “I have faith in our players. We need to reload a little bit, not completely rebuild, and there will undoubtedly be some difficult choices to make. However, I enjoy the arrangements we have. I think our young players are good; in their second and third years, many of them are starting to assume greater leadership roles.

“I think our guys have a very bright future in New Jersey, and we’ll end the season well. There will undoubtedly be a lengthy offseason.” However, I definitely like the men that are on our roster. I like the personalities we have; we simply need to add a few more, and the objectives will remain the same.

With Aaron Rodgers leading the team, winning a SAaron Rodgers was the obvious objective. That got much harder once he tore his Achilles on the season’s fourth play. However, the Jets still had a strong squad full of potential despite finishing 7-4 in the previous season and missing the playoffs.

The Jets’ decline this season—from 4-3 to 5-9 and another missed postseason—has led to a great deal of criticism directed on Douglas and Saleh. Rodgers acknowledged he might have pushed to play Sunday on Christmas Eve against the Commanders if they had been able to maintain the season on course or perhaps win Sunday in Miami to remain mathematically alive. But with the Jets out of the picture, it was not to be.

The Jets have to make a decision on Rodgers’ roster spot by Wednesday when his 21-day practice window closes. If they put him back on IR he will be done for the season. If they keep him on the active roster he will take a spot from someone else but it will allow him to continue practicing with his teammates. Either outcome is plausible, but either way it’s clear he won’t be back on the field in 2023 after tearing his Achilles on Sept. 11.