Aaron Rodgers knows a lot is riding on him and the Jets this year.
The expectations were high a year ago when New York traded for the four-time MVP before being dashed by an Achilles injury after only four plays and will be just as high again in 2024 now that he's back on the practice field with a litany of new players around him. The pressure is mounting, and failure means there will be a lot of changes this time around in 2025.
That mentality wasn't lost on Rodgers, either, who told reporters at the Jets' organized team activities (OTAs) Tuesday that he understands what's at stake this season — for him and the team.
"If I don't do what I know I'm capable of doing, we're all probably going to be out of here," Rodgers said. "I like that kind of pressure, though. ... I relish that opportunity."
The "we" Rodgers is referring to is likely himself, head coach Robert Saleh, his entire staff and general manager Joe Douglas. Rodgers, Saleh and Douglas were the architects of this unit in New York, and the ones who will have to pay if it all crumbles.
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Rodgers will be 41 in December, is coming off a torn Achilles and has already flirted with retirement several times over the past few years. There is also no more guaranteed money left on the final year of his Jets contract for 2025, per Over The Cap, meaning New York can move on from him after this season for nothing.
Saleh, for all of his hype as head coach in 2021, has yet to produce a winning season in three years. He went 4-13, 7-10 and 7-10. Douglas joined the Jets even earlier in 2019 and has also not produced a winning record for New York. His draft classes have also been severely disappointing — only Quinnen Williams and Sauce Gardner have made Pro Bowls and Garrett Wilson won Offensive Rookie of the Year in 2022.
This is why the Jets effectively went "all-in" this offseason. The decision to bring in veterans like Tyron Smith, John Simpson and Morgan Moses on the offensive line is all about preserving Rodgers, as was the decision to draft offensive tackle Olu Fashanu in the first round instead of tight end Brock Bowers.
Signing Mike Williams and drafting Malachi Corley to give Rodgers more offensive weapons played into this idea too. Even on defense, the Jets let Bryce Huff walk to a lucrative contract only to trade for Haason Reddick and sign former first-round Javon Kinlaw as a replacement.
How the Jets fare in 2024 will almost exclusively depend on Rodgers. Two ESPN analysts believe the Jets are good enough to win the Super Bowl this year, but only if Rodgers is healthy.
While Super Bowl-or-bust isn't a public mandate, anything short of a deep playoff run means the Jets failed in some way. If that happens, Rodgers' assessment of the outcome might come to fruition.
