The New York Jets want Aaron Rodgers. We’ve known this for weeks now. It’s just a matter of when it will happen. People are starting to get anxious. Particularly Jets owner Woody Johnson.
“I think we’re anxious,” Johnson said Tuesday at the owners’ meetings in Phoenix, via the New York Post. “We’re anxious, I guess. We look forward. We’re optimistic. We have a plan. We’re willing to stick with our plan. I don’t think anybody is hyperventilating.”
The comments on their plan coincide with comments from head coach Robert Saleh and general manager Joe Douglas, who also continue to preach the Jets have their positions on getting this deal done with the Packers, who more or less said goodbye to Rodgers this week based on comments from head coach Matt LaFleur and general manager Brian Gutekunst. Especially Gutekunst, who mentioned he tried reaching out to Rodgers to no avail and was left with no choice but to “do his job.”
Johnson may not be hyperventilating, but he does seem to be getting impatient. “I’m not the patient sort, really,” Johnson said. “We’ve got to win. We’re in the win business, so we have to win now. That’s the same thing I said 23 years ago.”
The Jets have the longest active playoff drought in the NFL and will soon have the longest drought in all of sports once the NBA’s Sacramento Kings clinch a playoff spot. New York hasn’t been to the playoffs since 2010.
The teams continue to talk as they try to reach an agreement on compensation for Rodgers, particularly in terms of draft pick capital this year and, more importantly, next year depending on whether or not Rodgers actually plays in 2024.