At this point, there isn’t much enthusiasm among Jets fans for the team to do anything other than trade for quarterback Aaron Rodgers.
What are their setbacks? Jimmy Garoppolo? please.
They need to close the deal. Rodgers knows that. Bakers know it too.
For example – the recent meeting between Rodgers and several members of the organization (we’re told vice president Christopher Johnson and team president Haimei Elhai were accompanied by owner Woody Johnson, GM Joe Douglas, coach Robert Salle and offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett) in New York but in California. They all flew out to see him and had no choice.
In such a situation, this is an important distinction. No Jets Rodgers interview; He interviewed them. The moment Johnson & Johnson, the successors to Johnson & Johnson, boarded that plane, it was game over.
Rodgers has the power. Rodgers has foreign exchange. Rodgers is in control.
What did the Jets do to lower expectations? They feed the story. They enjoy the attention. Now they have to close the deal.
According to them, it won’t result in the Packers asking for more — and Rodgers is expected to make more than the nearly $60 million he’s due this year.
But if the Packers or Rodgers try to take advantage of the fact that the Jets need to get this deal done, what will the Jets do? They will do the same if/when Rodgers makes it clear he’s not coming to the offseason program. Marcides Lewis, etc.) They would smile and nod and say, “We’ll fix it, sir.”
Who cares if he’s not there for the season plan? (Again, he should be.) The Jets didn’t have Brett Favre until training camp opened in 2008, but his partially torn biceps tendon would have carried them into the playoffs. The Jets already have a solid team, and Rodgers is the difference maker.
At this point, whatever happens in January won’t make a difference. The Jets wrote a blank check in March. They have willingly offered to sell their souls to the Prince of Darkness. The only question is whether Rodgers will accept.
