The New York Jets are under 24 hours away from opening up the 2024 NFL season on Monday Night Football against the defending NFC champion San Francisco 49ers, and their team leader Aaron Rodgers appears to have the right mindset heading into the campaign.
Rodgers is coming off of a torn Achilles that robbed him of all but four snaps in the 2023 NFL season. His return is supplemented with the highly anticipated debuts of marquee offseason wide receiver acquisition Mike Williams, as well as left tackle and No. 11 overall pick Olu Fashanu.
With 2024 carrying major Super Bowl implications for Gan Green, Rodgers, who has been to the league’s pinnacle once before in 2010, knows how best to approach the year to keep himself and his guys in check and dominate their slate.
Jets: Aaron Rodgers wants the team to be resilient through adversity in 2024
The four-time NFL MVP sees it best for his Jets to train their minds up to take on their competition this season. Per Nick Shook of NFL.com, Rodgers believes that the mental part of the game supersedes the physical, and with a squad teeming with uber-talented weapons at every angle, he may be right on the money with his assessment that he laid out on Thursday:
“The mental part of it is the most important part,” Rodgers said. “You’ve got to get your mind right. It’s a grind. It’s a long season, a lot of ups and downs. You’ve got to prepare yourself to really get off the wave.
“You’ve got to find a way to be a stability point for the team so we’re not riding the highs too much or riding the lows because adversity’s gonna come at some point of the season. We’ve got to make sure we’re handling it the right way.”
Jets: Aaron Rodgers’ mentality is shared by his teammates including LB C.J. Mosley
Fortunately for Rodgers, the Jets are filled with veteran talents who have experience playing in an array of environments and stages. When he comes off the field, he can observe his teammate and standout linebacker C.J. Mosley direct traffic for the New York as their green dot defender.
Mosley’s pass rush has All-Pro and Pro Bowl talent along with respected veteran contributors on all sides with a top-rated performance from 2023 to fuel them into the year. As Jack Bell of Newyorkjets.com shared earlier this offseason, Mosley declared that the Jets have “one standard” when they step on the field, and expounded upon the mentality he himself will bring to the field by saying in part:
“For me, the main thing is to stay healthy, stay on the field, bringing the mentality and leadership every single day, understanding this team is special, the opportunity we have is special, the things that we’ve built and the way we are heading,” Mosley said.
Jets will need to click on all cylinders to make the most of the 2024 campaign
On offense, Rodgers will need his featured weapons in the ground game and the receiver room to lock in, and he will need the same thing going for their offensive line. The O-Line had their share of struggles in training camp and will be looked at with a close eye to protect the 40-year-old QB and prevent him from suffering another catastrophic injury.
Much of their team success will hang on how well they are able to develop continuity, and how quickly that’ll get done at that. The Jets will have to gel in a regular season slate that has them featured in primetime and on national television at a higher rate than the majority of the league.
They’ll play four primetime games inside of their first 10 contests. Thus, with the bright lights set to beam down on Gang Green on Monday, the Jets will need to be on the same wavelength as their superstar QB in order to persevere through the challenges that their schedule presents and wage a hopeful Super Bowl run.
