Aaron Rodgers hasn’t had a need for the preseason in recent years. Since he last played in an exhibition in 2018, he has won the league’s MVP award twice and qualified for four Pro Bowls, solidifying himself as one of the greatest quarterbacks to ever live. While Jordan Love and the rest of the Packers backup quarterbacks got preseason playing time, Rodgers was always on the sidelines with a headset on.
Aaron Rodgers To Play First Preseason Game Since 2018
Aaron Rodgers will make his Jets debut next Saturday against the Giants a source confirmed to ESPN. He hasn’t played in a preseason game since 2018 ✈️
The New York Post first reported the news. pic.twitter.com/iqOMOT8QnB
— NFL on ESPN (@ESPNNFL) August 20, 2023
That will apparently change this year. In his first season with the Jets, Rodgers will make his first preseason appearance in five years. As reported by Brian Coz, a beat reporter for the Jets, Rodgers has gotten the nod as the starter for the Jets’ 4th and final exhibition game of the year. They’ll take on the cross-city Giants on Saturday, August 26th, and the game will be aired on NFL Network.
Tim Boyle and Zach Wilson have been getting many of the reps thus far through the team’s first three games, with the latter going 14 for 20 for 123 yards and a touchdown in the game against the Panthers. Wilson will likely get even more reps during the game against the Giants, as Rodgers figures to play perhaps a quarter at the most.
Jets Will Take On Bills In Week 1 Of Regular Season
“It helps me knowing that Aaron Rodgers believes in me, that he thinks I can play in this game for a long time. That’s why I lean on him so much. I truly appreciate to have a big brother like that.”- Zach Wilson
A big brother like that #Jets
pic.twitter.com/zbBx8Fw9O4
— Harrison Glaser (@NYJetsTFMedia) August 20, 2023
It will be a good way to knock any rust off. 2022 was a down year by Rodgers’ standards, and he has some ground to make up in reclaiming himself as one of the best in the game. The Jets are scheduled to take on the mighty Buffalo Bills during Week 1, and thrusting Rodgers into action immediately with his new team could be a somewhat wreckless move by the coaching staff.
Hopes are high for the Jets this coming year. They were of course the talk of the off-season with their acquisition of Rodgers, and made even further headlines recently with their signing of Dalvin Cook. They will enter the season with a Super Bowl odds designation of +1600. Rodgers is listed at +1800 to win the MVP award, on par with Tua Tagovailoa and Justin Fields.