NFL

NFL Inury Update: Jets Announce Decision on Benching or Starting Injured Aaron Rodgers

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By
Colin Lynch
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Colin Lynch Sports Editor

Colin Lynch covers the NFL, MLB and WNBA for Heavy.com, with a focus on the New England Patriots. His sports coverage has been featured on The Sports Daily and Basketball Insiders, as well as FanSided's Chowder & Champions. A New Hampshire native and former D1 baseball player at St. John's University, Colin was drafted by the San Diego Padres in 2008 and enjoyed a four-year professional baseball career.

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Published6 hours ago on October 30, 2024

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Jets Announce Decision on Benching or Starting Injured Aaron Rodgers

The Jets play host to the Texans on Thursday Night Football. Will Aaron Rodgers be their starting quarterback despite a spate of injuries? 

For the New York Jets, it’s a race against time, and for their 40-year-old quarterback, Aaron Rodgers, it’s a battle against body and age. Interim head coach Jeff Ulbrich admits that Rodgers isn’t at full strength. His Achilles may be mended, but his injury report reads like a quarterback’s litany—knee, ankle, hamstring, each week revealing a new test.

Tuesday brought a glimmer of hope. Rodgers was upgraded to full participation after a limited Monday, pushing through the aches, the bruises, and that familiar tightness.

When asked about Rodgers’ readiness for Thursday, Ulbrich’s response was simple, unembellished. The Jets had just faced the Patriots on Sunday, and now, in a mere four days, they’ll take on the Texans under the Thursday night lights.

“I might have had he come out of the game feeling worse than he had. This is fortunately one of the games he came out of no worse for the wear. Postgame was one of his better evaluations,” Ulbrich said. “Not at this point,” Ulbrich responded when asked if he would consider benching Rodgers “for a week or two” so he could get back to full health for the season’s final stretch.

The problem is that the Jets are in a must-win scenario for every game, as they currently sit at 2-6.

Rodgers Gives Health Update Following Loss to Patriots

The four-time NFL MVP, known for his unbreakable poise and grit, is now bound by a different kind of challenge—one not defined by opponents or playbooks but by his own body. Nursing both knee and hamstring injuries, Aaron Rodgers took the field in Week 8 against the Patriots, his movement notably labored, his rhythm disrupted.

Across the line, New England’s Davon Godchaux saw it, mentioning Rodgers’ struggle in postgame comments. For a quarterback who’s made a career out of escaping the pocket, it was a rare and telling sight. Godchaux said Rodgers didn’t look “mobile at all” and “you just don’t know if he could move back there.”

“He’s probably right. Yeah, I was hurting, but I feel better today,” said Rodgers. “I mean as far as my body’s been concerned, my left Achilles, thanks to Doc and the rehab I did, it’s felt incredible. The rest of my body hasn’t held up as well, but that hasn’t been an issue, thankfully,” Rodgers said on Tuesday.

Can Rodgers and the Jets Salvage Their 2024 Season?

At 2-6, the New York Jets sit last in the AFC East and near the bottom of the conference. For most, this season is already over. But for Aaron Rodgers, it’s anything but.

When asked about his mindset, Rodgers offered a simple refrain, “Just gotta win, baby.” “Just smile, show up, trust, believe, and root us on as hard as you can. We need that noise, we’re trying to rectify this as quickly as possible, [and] I know this has been frustrating for everybody but there is still a lot of season left,” Rodgers said on his message to Jets fans.

Against New England on Sunday, the four-time MVP delivered a glimmer of hope—a 111.2 passer rating, 233 yards, and two touchdowns in a narrow 25-22 loss. Limited in mobility, Rodgers was sacked only once, yet showed precision and control with each throw.

As Thursday approaches, Rodgers looks to repeat his Week 3 performance, where he recorded his season-best against the Patriots with 281 yards, two touchdowns, and a 118.9 passer rating. The Jets need every ounce of that form if they’re to mount a nearly impossible playoff push—a 9-0 or 8-1 finish would be required to keep those dreams alive.

For the Jets and Rodgers, it all starts on Thursday night. Under the lights of MetLife Stadium, the Jets will face a 6-2 Texans team—a chance to rewrite the story of this season, one game at a time.