All fears have been confirmed. Aaron Rodgers’ first season with the New York Jets has come to an end. An MRI performed this morning has corroborated that the star quarterback ruptured his Achilles tendon in the first minutes of his home debut against the Buffalo Bills, in the popular Monday Night Football game. The injury threatens the career of the 39-year-old, who has been named NFL MVP four times and arrived in New York in April with high expectations for a team that hasn’t won a title in more than half a century.
Rodgers injured his heel on the fourth move. The game, at MetLife Stadium, was less than four minutes into the game. On a first chance and ten yards to advance he was caught by Bills defensive end Leonard Floyd. The quarterback fell on his left side. The play was not too bulky, it seemed routine. Rodger stood up immediately. Taking a step he limped, looked at the bench, and made a small gesture with his head. I couldn’t go on. Doctors walked him off the court on his foot and then loaded him into a car that took him to the locker room. The player kept his gaze fixed on the ground along the way. So were Rodgers’ tragic first minutes with the green and white of the Jets.
His debut with New York had created enormous anticipation in the NFL. The football superstar, who spent 18 years in Green Bay, was set to open a brilliant new chapter for a franchise that has gone through many bitter pills since lifting the trophy in 1969 thanks to the legend of Joe Namath. The fans predicted a future where they would at least fight for the American conference title. The Jets haven’t played in the playoffs for twelve years. Rodgers signed to a three-year, $112 million contract, had a nine-win, zero-loss streak in Monday night games, the league’s prime-time primetime showcase.nfl games today live
With only 24 years and three seasons as a professional, Zach Wilson entered the court to replace Rodgers. The young pitcher who graduated from BYU University in Utah threw an interception in the first minutes of play. The Jets’ receivers corrected the course of a night that looked catastrophic. The Jets rallied to beat Josh Allen’s Bills in overtime, 16-22. Wilson will have to lead the team Sunday in the face of the Dallas Cowboys, who showed a dominant style in their first game of the season.
Despite the home win, Jets coach Robert Saleh told reporters there was concern within the organization about what happened in the opening minutes of the game. “We are worried about his Achilles heel… The MRI will probably confirm what we thought happened, but it’s not good,” Saleh told the conference.
The bad news has been confirmed this morning. The MRI has pulverized, for now, hopes that Rodgers will lift the Super Bowl award this year. Something the player invited to dream about in his first press conference after being transferred in April: “This morning, when I walked in, I noticed that that Super Bowl III trophy looks somewhat lonely.” Rodgers accompanied the comment with a mischievous grimace.
Now, Rodgers, who clinched the championship with Green Bay in February 2011, will have to focus on a tough road to recovery. His injury also puts the Jets on another track, that of finding a starter who can help Wilson carry the team through the season.Premier League 2023-24
For New York fans, Monday’s tragic night has echoes of another cursed game that occurred in September 1999. Quarterback Vinny Testaverde, who had led the Jets in January of that year to the American Conference finals, where they were defeated by the Denver Broncos, ruptured his Achilles tendon in the debut of the 1999-2000 season against the New England Patriots. The most chilling thing of all is that that misfortune also happened on a Monday.
