Aaron Rodgers aims to win his 2nd Super Bowl and fifth MVP honor as he goes into the 2024 season. Last season, however, wasn’t very kind to the former Packers QB, who was sidelined with an Achilles tear after playing just four snaps. Could such an injury impede his NFL journey, given that his age isn’t slowing down?
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After a quick recovery within six months, a determined Rodgers bounced back and is in line to emulate his former football counterpart, Tom Brady. Interestingly, he could do so by winning a Super Bowl. Earlier, TB12 won a Super Bowl for the Buccaneers when he was 43. And Aaron Rodgers isn’t far behind in reaching that mark. He will be 41 in December 2024.
However, NFL expert Nick Wright feels that a major roadblock for Rodgers to match Brady’s success at the age of 40 is his one-year gap. On the First Things First podcast, Wright stressed that the onus is on Rodgers to prove a point — because his last good season was in 2021. He is no longer consistent, which is not what we saw with either Tom Brady or LeBron James.
“The last time we saw him (Rodgers) play excellent was in the 2021 season. Then he has played one season poorly and one season he suffered a debilitating injury. We need to remove Brady and LeBron (as they are mere exceptions),” Wright argued.
Wright discussed how Rodgers produced impressive numbers before the 2021 season. But with the declining age, the Jets can’t rely on their veteran QB for over two seasons. As a result, the front office needs to discover a fresh talent, who could replace Rodgers, by the time he retires.
Nevertheless, earlier, Jets GM Joe Douglas started the conversation on the Rodgers age factor, with his open remark that Rodgers is “slinging the ball as well as ever”. But the experts and team are on opposite sides. Their division of opinion is regarding whether Rodgers can do it at this age. Amid the debate, the four-time MVP addressed the concerns surrounding his injury and fitness with an honest assessment.
Aaron Rodgers Gets Real About His Fitness
Despite the concerns raised by several pundits, a confident Aaron Rodgers has no doubts about his fitness. According to Bleacher Report, the Jets Quarterback said he has ‘absolutely zero pain’ following the 2023 Achilles tear. He added that he is doing a lot of workouts and logging plenty of running miles. This statement only denotes that he has no hindrance to taking up the QB1 role from the first game to the last.
A-Rod’s quick recovery is courtesy of the speed ridge technique used by his medical team that handled his Achilles tear injury. The move allowed the Jets to go ahead with their prepared plan. If Rodgers became unavailable, the team would have to depend on veteran backup Tyrod Taylor.
Notably, the Green Gang recently accelerated Zach Wilson’s trade to the Broncos. Thus, one could argue that the team is completely confident in 40-year-old Aaron Rodgers. Despite the age concerns, they hope he will pull a Tom Brady this season.
