Plenty of Super Bowl hype hovered over the New York Jets at this time last year before starting quarterback Aaron Rodgers went down with a torn Achilles four offensive snaps into the club’s regular-season opener.
Rodgers has fully recovered from that setback and is once again a popular pick to pursue some hardware.
ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler shared on Tuesday that “league executives and scouts” polled ahead of the campaign selected Rodgers as the favorite to win the Comeback Player of the Year Award for the 2024 season.
“The thing with Rodgers is if he can move with efficiency like he’s been able to in the past,” one AFC scout told Fowler. “While Tom Brady threw more traditionally from the pocket, Rodgers has always had more subtle movements and athleticism to his game, throwing on the run. If he can get that back, then watch out.”
Rodgers won the Most Valuable Player Award for the 2020 and 2021 campaigns while with the Green Bay Packers but then suffered a broken thumb on his throwing hand in Week 5 of the 2022 season that seemingly bothered him throughout the fall. He later picked up a rib injury in Week 12 of that same campaign, and he ultimately failed to guide the Packers to a playoff berth before the two sides parted ways via a trade completed in April 2023.
Wide receiver Allen Lazard has been Rodgers’ teammate since 2018 and recently insisted that the 40-year-old was “somewhere in between amazing and excellent” amid his recovery. NFL insider Dianna Russini of The Athletic seems convinced Rodgers will reclaim his best form, as Russini suggested on Tuesday that the future Hall of Famer could again compete for MVP honors through January.
“When we last saw a fully healthy Rodgers, he went 13-3, throwing for 4,000-plus yards, 37 touchdowns and just four interceptions, all at 38 years old,” Russini said. “Yes, 2022 was rough and 2023 was worse. But on a Jets team built to win now, Rodgers returns to elite status.”
The Jets made multiple moves to bolster their offensive line this offseason. They also have a star wide receiver in Garrett Wilson and a stud running back who can make Rodgers’ life easier in Breece Hall.
During an upcoming edition of his Underdog Fantasy “COACH” program, former New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick explained why he believes the Jets “are one of the hardest teams to prepare for from a skill standpoint.”
“Aaron knows how to use them and Aaron will know where the defense is heavy and where they’re light and be able to work the ball there,” Belichick said about Rodgers getting the most out of Wilson and Hall, per Andy Vasquez of NJ Advance Media for NJ.com.
“Problem is, if you load the box, you’re singled out there on Wilson, and that’s a tall order right there to deal with him in one-on-one coverage. And then his run-after-the-catch is exceptional,” Belichick added.
As of Tuesday morning, DraftKings Sportsbook listed Rodgers as the betting favorite at +140 odds to claim the Comeback Player of the Year Award for the upcoming season. That same outlet had Rodgers seventh among the betting favorites at +1800 odds to win MVP.