SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — Aaron Rodgers was eager to get back on the field and feel a few firsts in his return from an Achilles injury that cut his first season with the New York Jets short after only four snaps.
The first throw, the first hit, the first touchdown in a new uniform.
There was also the first loss as Rodgers showed some flashes of his four-time MVP form in a 32-19 loss to the San Francisco 49ers but also a little bit of expected rust after such a long layoff.
“We expect greatness when we step on the field,” Rodgers said. “There were moments, moments that felt pretty good but not sustained. I felt like if we could just get a first down we’d be rolling. But we had those three and outs which hurt us. I think a lot of stuff is correctable.”
Rodgers showed signs of his old self, connecting on a well-placed back-shoulder throw to his new No. 1 receiver Garrett Wilson in the first half and hitting his old Green Bay teammate Allen Lazard on a 36-yard scoring strike in the third quarter.
But those were just a few flashes on a night when he didn’t look comfortable moving in the pocket in his first back from the serious injury and struggled to move the ball consistently for the Jets.
Rodgers finished 13 for 21 for 167 with the touchdown and one interception. He threw for fewer yards only 13 times in 218 previous starts when he played at least 35 snaps.
“I can play better,” he said. “I missed a couple of throws. … I felt overall I got the ball out pretty good but there were some opportunities I’d like to have back.”
Rodgers’ second game with the Jets lasted much longer than his first, which ended with a season-ending Achilles injury after just four snaps in 2023.
New York went three-and-out on the opening drive this game with two handoffs and a dropped pass by Lazard before a setback on the fourth snap that was temporary instead of season ending this time around. Rodgers’ first completion as a Jet was caught by Breece Hall, who had the ball punched out by Fred Warner for a lost fumble that set up a Niners field goal.
Rodgers got the Jets moving on the following drive, converting three third-down passes to Wilson to set up Hall’s 3-yard TD run. Rodgers went 6 for 7 for 61 yards on the drive.
“It was awesome man, it’s great,” Wilson said about having Rodgers back. “Having him in the huddle, we’re just going to get better. As far as seeing him out there healthy, staying healthy throughout the whole game, it was a good feeling.”
New York didn’t get another first down until early in the third quarter after the 49ers had taken a 23-7 lead. Two plays after Rodgers’ 12-yard pass to Hall, Rodgers threw his first interception with New York. His pass to Wilson was deflected by Deommodore Lenoir into the hands of linebacker Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles.
The Jets struggled to get in a rhythm as the Niners bottled up Hall and the running game and the defense couldn’t make stops. New York ran just 37 offensive plays with Rodgers in the game before Tyrod Taylor took over on the final drive.
“We just didn’t see the field as much as we’d like,” coach Robert Saleh said. “I think our running game is going to be fine, but we only ran 49 plays today. We never got a chance to establish what we’re trying to establish.”
Rodgers provided his biggest highlight on his next drive when he took advantage of a free play when Leonard Floyd jumped offsides to throw his first TD pass in 610 days on the deep pass over the middle to Lazard.
It was Lazard who also caught Rodgers’ last TD pass in Green Bay in the final game of the 2022 season before he was traded to New York where he was supposed to fill the void of a franchise quarterback that Jets fans have been waiting a half-century for since Joe Namath left town.
The 40-year-old Rodgers spent his first 18 seasons with the Green Bay Packers, winning four MVPs and one Super Bowl. He was traded before the 2023 season to the quarterback-starved Jets. New York has gone through 15 starting QBs since last making the playoffs in 2010 with Mark Sanchez for the longest active postseason drought in the NFL.
But Rodgers’ first season with New York ended almost as quickly as it started. He ran onto the field with an American flag as part of a pregame celebration.
Then on his opening drive against Buffalo, Rodgers threw one incompletion and was sacked by Leonard Floyd and injured the Achilles. Rodgers made an attempt to return late last season but was unable to pull it off, setting the stage for his return in his native California against San Francisco — the team that memorably skipped over drafting him No. 1 overall in 2005 to take Alex Smith instead.
“It’s been a while,” he said. “I felt great, a lot of gratitude just to be back in pads. So many people helped me get back to this spit so I’m really thankful.”
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