Why 49ers' Fred Warner is 'hyped' to open season vs. Jets

49ers linebacker Fred Warner made it known during an appearance on the "Candlestick Chronicles" podcast that he's "hyped" to open the 2024 regular season with a "Monday Night Football" home game against Aaron Rodgers and the Jets.

"I was pumped up," Warner explained, per Joaquin Ruiz of NBC Sports Bay Area. "Playing on 'Monday Night Football' to start the season is always a great start. And like you mentioned, I do have a unique relationship with Aaron." 

As Ruiz noted, Rodgers was featuring for the Green Bay Packers in November 2020 when he referred to Warner as "possibly the best middle linebacker in the game" following a Green Bay win at San Francisco. 

"I am always grateful and indebted to him for the love that he showed me [when I was] going into my third season," Warner said about Rodgers' comment. "You know, sometimes that’s what it takes in order to kind of put yourself on the map is the nod from a guy who has been an MVP and been a Super Bowl champion who has the respect of the league because their words mean a lot." 

The Jets have Super Bowl expectations hovering over them for the second consecutive offseason even as Rodgers continues his recovery from the torn Achilles he suffered last September. Meanwhile, DraftKings Sportsbook listed the 49ers as the betting favorites at +250 odds to represent the NFC in Super Bowl LIX as of Friday morning. 

Warner mentioned during the podcast how Rodgers inspired the 2018 third-round draft pick regarding interactions with younger players. 

"I don’t take that lightly, and I try to do the same for the young guys coming up in this league — now that I have that respect — I kind of give other guys that respect as well," Warner added. "So I’m excited, man. It’s going to be a great game."

Also on Friday, DraftKings had Warner and the 49ers as -5.5 favorites to beat the Jets in the final game of the season's opening weekend of action. Whatever occurs across four quarters of play, it seems Warner will likely want to chat with Rodgers in the middle of the Levi's Stadium field following the game.