Aaron Rodgers still the star of Jets OTA's despite not practicing
Aaron Rodgers stood to the side of one of the practice fields at the Jets’ headquarters on Wednesday and flicked passes 50 yards with the ease of someone brushing some dust off a counter.
Wearing a compression sleeve on his tweaked right calf, Rodgers did not participate in the Jets’ OTA practice but he still stole the show. Jets practices have been a desert of good quarterback play for most of the last decade. Here was a rose blossoming in the middle of the Sahara.
One after another, he delivered beautiful strike after beautiful strike to a Jets staffer stationed a half field away. Rodgers barely took a step as he launched pass after pass.
There is no doubt that this very much the honeymoon period for Rodgers in New York and that is worth remembering, but it is hard not to get caught up in the energy that Rodgers has brought to an organization in desperate need of a shot of adrenaline.
Rodgers’ teammates and coaches can’t stop gushing about how he has approached his first weeks with the Jets.
Aaron Rodgers remained the star of the show at Jets OTA’s despite not practicing. Noah K. Murray for the NY Post
“I’ve been around a lot of superstars in this league that are very standoffish, that are very isolated, do their own thing,” Jets defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich said, “and he’s as inclusive as I’ve ever been around, especially for a player of that caliber.”
Rodgers’ résumé gives him instant credibility. The four MVP awards and his Super Bowl win give him a gravitas a Jets quarterback has not had since Brett Favre’s brief turn here. But Rodgers has not just rested on his résumé. He has engaged with teammates and been like an extra coach as the Jets learn Nathaniel Hackett’s offense.
Watching him during the OTA on Wednesday, he was at Zach Wilson’s side one minute and then he was talking to wide receivers and gesturing to them possibly about how to run specific routes.
Rodgers likes meetings to be like conversations instead of just having a coach standing in the front of the room delivering the message. Teammates say he will interject in meetings to make sure they understand the concepts. He has dropped by meetings of all the different position groups.
Second-year running back Breece Hall said players must stay ready for a quiz from Rodgers.
“You feel that sense of calm, but you also know you’ve got to be on your stuff because he expects you to be in this spot because you know he’s going to get you the ball if you’re in the right place,” Hall said.
One of the big questions during the Jets’ pursuit of Rodgers was how “all-in” he would be. Would he show up for OTAs? Would he take an active role with the younger players? He has done more than the Jets could have hoped for.
Aaron Rodgers (r.) works out on a stationary bike next to teammate Randall Cobb at Jets OTA’s on May 31. Noah K. Murray for the NY Post
Aaron Roders (r.) speaks with Jets owner Woody Johnson at Jets OTA’s on May 31. AP
“I’ve been around some really good quarterbacks,” said veteran left tackle Duane Brown. “Just the command he has with everything, it’s different.”
Rodgers is not just helping the offense. Ulbrich said he expects Rodgers to have a huge impact on the defense in training camp. Ulbrich and Robert Saleh will be adding some new wrinkles to the defense and they expect Rodgers to find the holes in them.
“There’s times where some of those schematic wrinkles, you don’t know the pitfalls,” Ulbrich said. “You don’t know the snakes in the grass, so to have a quarterback like him to really exploit some of the new stuff that we have, it gets those necessary scars and keloids, especially when you’re trying to do new stuff, so he’s going to provide that. Plus, he’s just going to sharpen us up because when you’re off by that much, he’s going to capitalize, so just our attention to detail just goes to another place.”
Aaron Rodgers at Jets OTA’s on May 31. Noah K. Murray for the NY Post
The Jets have spent the last two years playing young players. Those players have to grow up and now they have Rodgers showing them the way.
“His impact on this team, especially these younger players, is going to be felt for the remainder of all their careers,” Ulbrich said. “He’s going to change the course of these young players’ careers forever.”
Source: New York Post
