After two tame performances in the New York Jets’ first games of the 2024 season, fans and analysts alike began to wonder if Aaron Rodgers had been defeated by Father Time. However, those calls have been put on hold following the 40-year-old quarterback’s dominance in New York’s Week 3 victory over the New England Patriots.
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The slowest – and oldest – he looked all night was early in the third quarter when New England defensive end Keion White tackled him from behind near the sideline on an 11-yard scramble. Rodgers discussed the play in his postgame conference, reflecting that he must adjust his approach to those types of collisions moving forward:
“I am 40 [years old], and there’s really fast guys in this league. so [I’ve] gotta finish the play…but every time I get drilled or tackled out of bounds like that, it’s another piece of confidence for me.”
Rodgers said it reminded him of a similar run he made in 2008, where Hall of Fame defensive end Julius Peppers hit him out of bounds.
The Jets QB appeared to be back in his prime against the Patriots. He completed 77.1% of his throws, amassed 281 yards, and threw two touchdown passes while leading the Jets to a 24-3 win.
Rodgers’ confidence in his team’s chances at winning Super Bowl 59 will only continue to grow if they can continue playing great in all aspects as they did on Thursday night.
However, despite the tremendous game, there was one thing Rodgers wishes would have turned out differently.
Rodgers wanted to take a knee
With their margin at 21 points in the game’s final stages, the Patriots decided to replace quarterback Jacoby Brissett and give first-round pick Drake Maye his first taste of regular season competition.
Maye, on a 16-play drive, drove New England to the Jets’ 7-yard line before being sacked on the final snap of the contest.
The rookie didn’t score any points, but he did manage to foil Rodgers’ dream of taking a knee to end the game.
“All of those chants are really meaningful. I was [kind of] hoping for a stop there to take a final knee on the field, [but] it was a special night.”
Rodgers may have been denied the cherry on top of his throwback performance, but he’d be the first to admit that winning is the best possible gift he could have received. Now, he gets 10 days to rest before taking on the Denver Broncos in Week 4.
