While the Jets and Aaron Rodgers registered another assuring win on TNF, A-Rod pushing Rober Saleh on the sidelines when the latter tried to hug became a huge talking point. Speculation ran wild about the nature of the incident, with 4-time MVP receiving flak for his odd behavior.
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This incident also brought another pushing incident involving the Jets QB back into the limelight which was one of the highlights of the last season, where he lasted exactly 4 snaps.
The altercation occurred during the last preseason when the Jets played the Giants. Since the game appeared on the final episode of The Hard Knocks, it got its fair share of attention.
The clip from The Hard Knocks showed Rodgers and the Giants’ Linebacker Jihad Ward getting into a war of words after the LB gave the 4-time MVP a late shove on a rush.
A-Rod, not one to hold back, threw a familiar dissing line at Ward, stating that he didn’t know who the Giants LB was, asking him to show some respect for the veteran QB:
“What the was that? Show some respect, bro. C’mon, what was that? Five damn steps — I don’t even know who you are, bro.”
Rodgers didn’t stop there, as he continued to taunt Ward after throwing a TD pass, urging the Vikings man “not to poke the bear”.
That said, both Robert Saleh and A-Rod had something to say about their sideline incident, shedding light on the rumors of the bad blood between them.
Rodgers showed no interest in hugging Saleh
After the Jet’s second touchdown and with the score 14-0, Rodgers walked towards the sideline to allow the team’s defense to take over, jubilant Saleh tried to hug his QB, only for him to push the HC away.
A-Rod walked away, giving Saleh a stern look and a vicious side-eye. Fans, as always, read into the interaction as trouble in paradise and slammed Rodgers for reacting that way.
Both Saleh and Rodgers have downplayed the incident, offering partly- similar explanations. The Jets coach brushed it off as harmless, explaining that Rodgers was simply reminding him of their defensive plan:
“Part of the things that we’ve been talking about is to just get the defense a two-score lead. And it was a two-score lead so I guess it was he just wanted to see something on defense so just reminded me that he got a two-score lead.”
When asked about the incident in the post-match press conference, Rodgers dismissed it as nothing significant. He explained that there was nothing awkward about the exchange, saying he was just taken aback when Saleh went for a hug, as the Jets head coach typically isn’t much of a hugger.
The 4-time MVP also mentioned Saleh’s preference for holding two-score leads, and he was simply reminding him of the lead by giving him a gentle push.
So it seems there is no trouble in paradise, just yet. As the Jets romped to a 24-3 win over the Patriots, everything seemed to be clicking in place.
Rodgers completed 27-35 passes for 281 yards, along with 2 passing TDs while the ground game accounted for 133 yards of offense. Even the defense which gave 49 points in the first two matches, shored things up.
The Jets welcome the Broncos at home on the 28th of September during Sunday Night Football.
