Kelly: Haven't we Seen this Green Bay legend to New York story before?
Haven’t we seen this movie before?
Aging Green Bay legend divorces Packers country and runs into the arms of the big city.
Who’s afraid of the NFL’s four-time Most Valuable Player honoree?
I’m certain New York Jets fans think the rest of the AFC East should be considering Brett Favre … I mean Aaron Rodgers ... intends on following in Favre’s footsteps, leaving Green Bay for the bright lights of New York.
Favre … I mean Rodgers … hopes to make one last run at winning his second championship with the Jets as the army behind him, just like Favre did back in 2008.
The funny thing is, I don’t anticipate Rodgers’ final chapter — his fling with a new team, in a new city, learning a new market — to end any better than Favre’s did when he produced a 9-7 record in the season where the quarterback he replaced (Chad Pennington) led Miami to the franchise’s last AFC East division title.
And coincidentally enough, it was a 24-17 win over a Favre-led Jets team in the season finale that clinched that division title and advanced an 11-5 Dolphins team to the postseason.
In fairness to Favre and the Hall of Famer’s legacy, Favre led those Jets to an 8-3 record and created the most exciting Jets team in recent franchise history. Then he tore a tendon in his biceps that turned his rocket arm into a popgun.
With his legendary consecutive-starts streak on the line, Favre kept playing, but he underthrew receivers regularly and racked up nine interceptions and threw just two touchdowns to go with a 55.2 quarterback rating in his final five games.
That’s what happens to 38-year-old legends who don’t know when it’s time to hang it up. Rodgers is set to turn 40 in December.
WHAT KIND OF COMMITMENT WILL AARON RODGERS MAKE?
Does anyone in New York know if Rodgers will commit to the offseason program, working with his teammates in the spring and summer, which wasn’t the case in Green Bay for many years?
During his chat with The Pat McAfee Show, the 10-time Pro Bowler said he was leaning toward retirement before taking his darkness retreat. And now the Jets organization is bending over backwards to accommodate the moody diva, who has spent the past three seasons flirting with retirement.
If you’re the Dolphins, New England Patriots or Buffalo Bills, you should love this because it means New York’s lights are either going to burn bright before they eventually fade and the franchise undergoes yet another reset, or Rodgers’ New York stint will fall short of expectations, which is for the Jets to be championship contenders. And then enter yet another rebuild.
Making Rodgers’ $50 million-a-year contract work financially will create some challenges that will likely lead to a bit, if not a ton, of roster purging for the Jets unless he restructures his deal a ton.
There’s a different level of roster management that comes with preparing your franchise to carry a hefty quarterback contract, as opposed to surprisingly having one being placed on your books.
To finalize the trade, there likely will have to be a ton of belt-tightening done, and that could water down the Jets' talent base.
As long as the Jets are dethroning the Buffalo Bills, the reigning division champions for the past two seasons, and holding off the Dolphins, no harm, no foul. But what if they don’t?
Jets fans will tell you that their team was a good quarterback away from making some serious noise in the conference.
No doubt New York had one of the NFL’s upper-echelon defenses.
But what else?
DOLPHINS HAVE BETTER OFFENSIVE TALENT THAN THE JETS
Last season Tua Tagovailoa outperformed Rodgers when concussions weren’t soiling his season. Excuse it however you'd like, but the statistics weren’t even close. What Rodgers has on his side is his resume, his name, and the fact he’s a season removed from back-to-back MVP seasons.
Jets receiver Garrett Wilson was one of the NFL’s most promising rookies last season, but he’s not in Tyreek Hill's or even Jaylen Waddle’s stratosphere just yet. And neither is Allen Lazard, the former Packers receiver Rodgers supposedly encouraged the Jets to sign this week.
Breece Hall was a stud last season, averaging 5.8 yards per carry in the seven games he played before suffering his knee injury. There’s no guarantee he’ll be the same player, or better, in 2023 when healthy.
Luring Rodgers was a move motivated by desperation from head coach Robert Saleh and General Manager Joe Douglas, whose seats are likely getting warm.
Saleh is 11-23 in his two seasons, and Douglas’ three-year reign hasn’t been any better (it’s actually worse).
But here comes Favre … I mean Rodgers … to save the day.
Or better yet, the franchise.
This must be one of those cheesy remakes Hollywood has been doing.
