Former Jets player reacts to team moving on from Aaron Rodgers

The recently-hired New York Jets regime, featuring first-time head coach Aaron Glenn and general manager Darren Mougey, informed Aaron Rodgers earlier this month that the club will move on from the veteran quarterback during the offseason. 

While serving as a guest WFAN co-host on Monday, former Jets offensive lineman and current NFL analyst Willie Colon suggested the team's hiring of 42-year-old offensive coordinator Tanner Engstrand is one reason Rodgers won't remain with the club for another campaign. 

"A couple things you have to look at," Colon explained about the situation, Audacy's Lou DiPietro shared. "One, they brought in a new OC, and if this thing doesn’t take off in the right way, you know that's gonna be tough for a young OC to kind of deal with Aaron Rodgers — he’s not the easiest guy to work with. Two, you need a new start overall. I'm okay with Aaron Glenn and Co. saying we’ve seen this, we know what it is and I want to run this ship my way and not have to adhere to anything you got going on. Aaron Rodgers is a Hall of Fame quarterback, so he has a place at the table, but overall, I think it's probably the best move moving forward." 

The perception that Rodgers is "not the easiest guy to work with" is one reason reporters believe the Pittsburgh Steelers, Cleveland Browns and Indianapolis Colts are among the teams that won't pursue the 41-year-old whenever he officially becomes available. Specifically, some within the Jets reportedly were at least a little bothered that Rodgers skipped the club's two-day mandatory minicamp this past spring because of a pre-planned trip and that he routinely generated headlines via comments he made during interviews on programs such as "The Pat McAfee Show." 

For a piece published on Monday, NFL insider Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated wrote that "the timelines of the Jets and Rodgers" "no longer match up" after he looked like a shell of his all-time great self as he dealt with injuries to both his knees, a low ankle sprain and a serious hamstring issue during the 2024 season. 

"He had a hamstring," Colon added about Rodgers. "He had a knee, he had an ankle and there were reports that his hip was starting to nag him. You need a new start."

One will never know what could've been for the Jets had Rodgers not suffered a torn Achilles four offensive snaps into the 2023 regular-season opener. Ultimately, his inability to reclaim his best form following that setback is the biggest reason a Jets regime that didn't recruit him two offseasons ago is now going in a different direction.