Aaron Rodgers reveals whether he will play if the Jets are out of contention
Injured New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers suggested before he returned to practice on Wednesday he won't try to play again this season if the Jets aren't "alive" in the playoff hunt when he's cleared to face live defenses.
Rodgers expanded on his mindset while speaking with reporters on Thursday afternoon:
Rodgers continues to make an astonishing recovery from the torn Achilles he suffered on Sept. 11 but now must be either activated or shut down for the rest of the campaign 21 days from Wednesday. There's no indication he plans to play for the 4-7 Jets in this Sunday's home game against the 5-6 Atlanta Falcons or when New York hosts the Houston Texans (6-5) on Dec. 10.
Shortly after Rodgers offered his comments, the ESPN Football Power Index gave the Jets a 0.5% chance to make the playoffs. It sounds like the future Hall of Famer, who turns 40 years old this Saturday, could try to play at the Miami Dolphins (8-3) on Dec. 17 if New York's postseason odds improve by Week 15 despite fears related to any re-injury of his Achilles:
According to ESPN stats, the Rodgers-less Jets entered Thursday evening ranked 31st in the NFL with an average of 260.2 yards per contest and 30th with an average of 14.8 points per game. Interestingly, oddschecker previously listed New York as a three-point underdog against Atlanta but dropped that line to +2 on Thursday afternoon.
It was known before Thursday that the postseason tournament essentially begins for the Jets against Atlanta. Whether or not Rodgers' presence at MetLife Stadium can bolster what's been a terrible offense when that unit attempts to produce points versus the Falcons remains to be seen.
More must-reads: