Jets' Aaron Rodgers defends Nathaniel Hackett amid criticisms

Injured New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers earned Most Valuable Player honors twice when Nathaniel Hackett was his offensive coordinator with the Green Bay Packers from 2019 through the 2021 season. 

Rodgers defended the Jets' current coordinator amid the club's offensive woes during a Tuesday appearance on "The Pat McAfee Show." 

"Yeah, yeah, I see it," Rodgers said of criticisms lobbed Hackett's way, as shared by Rich Cimini of ESPN. "I won MVP twice in the same offense, so I'm a believer. I'm a believer in the offense. There are a lot of positions, you have to play better. But, yeah, it's easy right now to throw it at the usual suspects, [temporary starting quarterback Zach Wilson] and Nathaniel, but there's a lot of positions that need to play better."

The Jets hired Hackett this past offseason knowing they likely were going to land Rodgers ahead of the draft, but the future Hall of Famer then went down with a torn Achilles early in the regular-season opener. Wilson has been a mixed bag playing in Rodgers' place, and ESPN stats show the 24-year-old ranks 30th in the league among qualified players with a 34.2 adjusted QBR on the campaign. 

Wilson's one touchdown pass over New York's last five games occurred when running back Breece Hall took a checkdown 50 yards to the house versus the New York Giants on Oct. 29. Meanwhile, the Jets are ranked 29th in the NFL with an average of 283.1 offensive yards per game and 30th with 16.0 points per contest. 

Despite such lackluster numbers and the fact that players aren't hiding their frustrations regarding the offense's poor play, head coach Robert Saleh declared Monday he's starting Wilson at the 5-5 Buffalo Bills this coming Sunday. 

"There's a lot of geniuses out there with ideas about how to fix the whole thing, but in actuality, it's very simple," Rodgers added about Gang Green's offense. "If you watch the film, you can see where the issues lie and there are plays to be made. There are opportunities that are out there and we're just not getting it done."

Rodgers probably isn't returning to the lineup before the 4-5 Jets play at least four more games, and he acknowledged Tuesday his timeline could change "if we're not in [contention] in three or four weeks." As of Tuesday afternoon, oddschecker listed the Jets as seven-point underdogs against the Bills.