Another ugly loss for the Jets and a broken relationship between Aaron Rodgers and Garrett Wilson

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — Aaron Rodgers went to the bench after an interception that preceded the first unnecessary roughness penalty of his career. He sat down, then laughed.

Record scratch. Still image.

“You’re probably wondering how I got into this situation.”

The referee laughs as he gives Aaron Rodgers a personal foul for a late goal. pic.twitter.com/eJ1GDzPzD1

– Rate the Refs app (@Rate_the_Refs) December 29, 2024

It’s Week 17 and the Jets have lost again, a mess of a class. Rodgers’ pick and late goal was one of many low points in a game that would get much, much worse from there. A 12-0 deficit became 19-0, then 26-0, then 33-0, then 40-0 — and then, according to Rodgers, he told interim coach Jeff Ulbrich that maybe it was time to give in Way to back up Tyrod Taylor, who led the Jets with two scoring drives to close the game. Final score: 40-14. The Jets’ record is 4-12, their season reaching a level of futility that seemed unimaginable at the start of the year. Imagine saying that Rodgers would play all 17 games — he’s expected to start again next week — and that the Jets would be sitting here on Dec. 29, on the verge of a complete demolition, wondering how everything went so wrong.

“I mean, it’s kind of like the season, it just got away from us,” Rodgers said, looking at the likelihood that next week’s season finale will be his last game in a Jets jersey — and possibly his last in the NFL . “We missed too many games. We moved the ball and then we just hit a wall and that was the end of the season, so to speak.”

How did the Jets and Rodgers get here? Well, through a series of poor offseason decisions by general manager Joe Douglas, a series of reactive decisions by owner Woody Johnson – namely firing Robert Saleh after Week 5 – and a team that didn’t seem to have much left to do at the end of the year didn’t care about anything other than reaching the finish line. Sunday’s performance may have been the worst of the season from start to finish, a game in which the Jets were penalized 16 times for 120 yards, turned the ball over three times (twice on Rodgers interceptions, once on a lost fumble by Garrett Wilson). and they keep falling flat on their face, just as they have in most weeks since Ulbrich Saleh took over.

“Last week I was happy with everything. Last week I finally had to say: It is what it is,” said cornerback DJ Reed. “But the frustration just crept in. Even if we have a bad record, we still have to go out and record stuff that’s good. The fact that we don’t do that is very frustrating. Going out like this is unacceptable. It’s the NFL. Every game should be competitive. Being 0:40 behind is embarrassing, of course, period.”

Wilson added: “I always feel like we go out there, the mood is right, we’re ready to play. Then we get a kick in the ass.”

Cornerback Sauce Gardner pointed out that the Bills’ last game – a 23-20 loss in Week 6 – was close. “So if you ask me, that means the season is over. Of course we won’t go to the playoffs. Some people might get checked out. This is just speculation…we can’t play as a team. We’re probably just individuals because we had a squad last year and the year before that wasn’t as talented as this one, but we found ways to beat the Bills. What’s stopping that now?”

The Jets have a lot of problems to contend with, and it will be up to a new general manager and a new head coach to figure out how to solve them. But there’s no denying that the Rodgers’ marriage was an unmitigated disaster. In recent weeks, it seemed as if the future Hall of Famer was trolling Johnson as if he wanted the Jets owner to release him at the end of the season. On Tuesday last week, Rodgers joked about the idea that Johnson’s teenage son, Brick, would be the one to release him. The next day, Rodgers told reporters that he believes the chances of him being fired immediately after the season are greater than zero — and he didn’t seem too upset about the prospect. Lately, Rodgers has seemed more concerned with throwing his 500th career touchdown pass, and he has been desperately trying to make sure wide receiver Davante Adams, his longtime close friend, is the one to catch it. This affects his already tenuous relationship with Wilson.

A few weeks ago, The athlete reported that Wilson was unhappy with the Jets’ direction. On Sunday, an NFL Network report suggested that the disintegration of the Wilson-Rodgers relationship began during training camp when they got into a heated, animated discussion during a practice that caused a stir on social media (the two were playing then download it). Things have only gotten worse since Adams arrived via trade on October 15th. Now, according to NFL Network, Wilson may not want to return to the Jets if Rodgers is still around.

If the Jets are deciding between Rodgers and Wilson, the right choice is obvious: the 24-year-old star receiver putting the finishing touches to his third straight 1,000-yard season, rather than the 41-year-old quarterback who one of which is coming off his worst games ever (12 of 18, 112 yards, zero touchdowns, two interceptions) and the circus that follows him.

Ulbrich didn’t have much to say about Rodgers’ performance on Sunday.

“I looked at the tape honestly,” Ulbrich said. “I didn’t notice much of the offense.”

It’s not hard to figure out which of the Jets’ two veteran quarterbacks Wilson prefers. In last week’s loss to the Rams, Rodgers got the Jets into the red zone early in the fourth quarter and forced a fade to Adams on fourth down rather than targeting Wilson, who was open elsewhere (the pass was broken up). Wilson only had three goals in this game until the end of the fourth quarter. After that game, Wilson was asked about his lack of commitment. His answer: “I’d love to be involved, I love having an impact on the game, but people see it differently.” It was a clear shot at Rodgers. A few days later, Rodgers said he and Wilson hadn’t spoken about the wide receiver’s frustration in weeks — and he didn’t seem particularly interested in delving deeper into their relationship.

On Sunday, Rodgers had to end the game for Wilson to finally score in the red zone. After moving the offense into the red zone against Bills backups, Taylor immediately looked Wilson’s way, and Wilson hauled in an impressive touchdown catch. It was Wilson’s first red zone target since Week 14. The Jets also scored on Taylor’s next drive. Taylor completed 11 of 14 passes for 83 yards and two touchdowns.

“We knew how it would go if he was out there,” Wilson said of Taylor. “At the end of the day, we are all professionals. When you say that word, he is someone who embodies that more than anyone else. When he’s out there and gets his chance, he’s going to take it.”

Assuming that Rodgers will not return to the Jets in 2025, Taylor is currently the most likely candidate to be their starting quarterback in 2025. The 35-year-old is under contract for another season and is making an offer with his His agility and willingness to shoot up the field is what sets him apart from Rodgers, although he has been prone to injuries throughout his career.

But if it takes setting up Taylor (or someone else) to keep Wilson around, then that’s exactly what should happen. The Rodgers experiment failed. The Wilson experiment is still going on, and he at least sounds like someone who can see a future where he’s still a jet and things are better than they are now. There are many factors to consider — Wilson is eligible for a contract extension for the first time this offseason and the Jets still need to hire a head coach and GM — but he’s the type of player to build around. Rodgers is not at this point.

“It’s frustrating,” Wilson said of the Jets’ season, “but it will make the good times ahead all the more enjoyable because we’ve been through things like this.”

(Photo: Timothy T. Ludwig / Getty Images)