The New York Jets may have entered the 2024 NFL season in win-now mode, but with six weeks still to play, they have completely reversed course, initiating a complete dismantlement. Head coach Robert Saleh was the first to return in October, and on Tuesday, increasingly impatient owner Woody Johnson moved up even higher. firing general manager Joe Douglaswhose contract would expire after the season anyway.
And now Aaron Rodgers appears likely He will follow Saleh and Douglas to the door. Johnson (who supposedly sought to bench Rodgers after just four games this year) has lost confidence in Rodgers’ ability to end Gang Green’s 14-year playoff drought, according to The Athletic, which also reported that Rodgers wants to play in 2025 but for another team. The Jets can save money by releasing Rodgers this offseason, so a split would seem to make sense for both sides.
Is it possible that Johnson can rediscover his faith in Rodgers? Sure. The Jets, after all, aren’t exactly a solid process model. But should they move forward, likely designating Rodgers as a post-June 1 cut, these teams could be possible landing spots:
There may be no team more desperate for something, anything, at the quarterback position, and while the 2025 NFL Draft appears to be their first priority in addressing the position, who’s to say they couldn’t give it another try? With more than $100 million in projected cap space, they also have the money to make big investments up front and overall, where Rodgers would likely demand upgrades. Would Davante Adams’ bitter experience in Las Vegas stop A-Rod from trying his luck in Sin City? Maybe. But Rodgers may not have many alternatives, and Raiders coach Antonio Pierce could earn his respect as a former NFL colleague and California native. Rookie star tight end Brock Bowers is another draw.
Aside from the storybook parallels to Brett Favre, who also went from being a Packers legend to being rented out by the Jets and Vikings to close out his career, this one registers as sneakily plausible. The Vikings would surely prefer to re-sign current starter Sam Darnold, who has done reasonably well under Kevin O’Connell, but what if Darnold opts for a higher-paying job in 2025 free agency, with confidence restored and ready to leave the looming shadow of first-round pick JJ McCarthy? Minnesota could still want a placeholder as McCarthy returns from knee surgery, and Rodgers would be getting a ready-made lineup with the best offensive line, skill weapons and defense he’s had in years. Vikings general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah was in the San Francisco 49ers front office when the Niners reportedly tried to sign Rodgers in 2021, and he would also be betting on the revenge factor, which would give him would allow Rodgers to play against the Packers at least twice.
After nearly two seasons with Will Levis at quarterback, the Titans still may not be sure what they have in the former second-rounder, so much so that the talented but erratic gunslinger could benefit from taking a seat. With veteran skill weapons including Tony Pollard and Calvin Ridley, a solid defense, a very winnable division, more than $65 million in projected cap space and an offensively oriented head coach like Brian Callahan, they could be one of the few teams with an apparent quarterback need and enough proven talent to attract Rodgers at this stage of his career. Like Adofo-Mensah in Minnesota, general manager Ran Carthon was also part of the 49ers regime that considered a potential Rodgers trade years ago.
1. Retirement
Let’s be real: If Rodgers doesn’t return for a third season with the Jets, he probably won’t return at all. Somehow, it took a lot of work for the former star to even leave the Green Bay Packers in 2023. Plus, New York is specifically where he wanted to be. The Jets’ subsequent heeding of his every wish, pouring resources into former Packers allies like Nathaniel Hackett and Allen Lazard, confirmed that. It’s one thing to start over. It’s another to do it at age 41, after back-to-back injury-plagued seasons, and likely for a team that won’t want to assume his power level or isn’t adequately equipped to challenge for the title. Rodgers may want a celebratory sendoff, but like Tom Brady after his slow end, he can realize that time has simply passed and call it a career rather than subject himself to additional turmoil.
