Aaron Rodgers is a daily mentor to Zach Wilson

By | Niranjan Bhargav 23 Sep, 2023

Everyone in green is rallying around Zach Wilson, even a well-known mentor who is working from afar.

Since Aaron Rodgers’ injury, the Jets have done everything they can to support Wilson, emphasizing how much he has progressed since last season and fostering confidence in him via positive words and deeds.

Rodgers is also contributing.

While he is in Malibu, California, recovering from surgery to repair the ruptured left Achilles tendon he sustained four plays into his Jets debut, Rodgers is doing everything he can to assist his successor.

Rodgers claimed on “The Pat Mcafee Show” on Friday that he saw the whole Jets-Cowboys game last Sunday and has been interacting with Wilson on a regular basis.

Since Rodgers’ Achilles injury, Jets head coach Robert Saleh has made it plain that Wilson is his quarterback.

Following the team’s humiliating defeat to the Cowboys on Sunday, numerous teammates crowded around Wilson in the locker room and assured him they believed in him.

On Friday, each player’s locker had a black T-shirt with the words “I got your back.”

“I talk to Zach Wilson all the time. I love Zach. We talk every single day. I’m pulling for him. I just want him to go out & play free & confident this week. Bill Belichick & the Patriots, the #Jets haven’t beaten them in a while, so good time to end the streak.”- Aaron Rodgers pic.twitter.com/RvnylA9I7C
— Harrison Glaser (@NYJetsTFMedia) September 22, 2023

Garrett Wilson described the motto as a team-wide approach to supporting one another in the face of hardship.

Zach Wilson, who has yet to find success in the NFL, has faced his fair share of hardship, most notably against the Jets’ Sunday opponent, the Patriots. He has a 0-4 record against them and seven interceptions.

“I just need to be smart with the ball,” Wilson explained.

Rodgers has made it plain that he will be there for Wilson.

They’ve had a tight friendship since before Rodgers joined the team.

They worked out together this offseason before the deal that took Rodgers to the Jets, and they continued to work out together this spring and summer.

Wilson, the second-overall choice in the 2021 NFL Draft who failed miserably in his first two years in the league, was supposed to use this season as a reset season.

Wilson took over as a starter when Rodgers tore his Achilles.

He helped the Jets beat the Bills in overtime in Week 1, but he didn’t stand a chance in an ugly Week 2 defeat to the Cowboys, in which the Jets’ offensive line was dominated.

Rodgers is expected to return to the club next week, according to Saleh.

Rodgers stated that he would return as soon as he could walk. When that happens, Rodgers has yet to determine where he will be on game days.

“I’m missing the guys.” It’s hard to be away from them,” he said. I’ll be able to get there at some point. I don’t think I can be on the sidelines until I can evade guys running [into me]. I don’t know if I’ll be hanging out with Woody and Christopher [Johnson] in the owner’s box eating hot dogs.”

He added, with a smile: “I don’t eat hot dogs.”

Rodgers, 39, seemed to be in good spirits.

He acknowledged that after the injury, he briefly questioned whether that was it for him, but that doubt did not stay.

A week earlier on ESPN, the four-time MVP said, “anything’s possible,” implying a comeback in January if the Jets make the playoffs. That is improbable for an injury that generally heals in nine months to a year.

On Friday, he stated that he does not want to set a date on his return but that recent development has “the hope meter trending upwards.” He says he was inspired by a video on Kobe Bryant’s comeback after rupturing his Achilles at the age of 34. He’s even fantasized about what it’s like to sprint through the MetLife Stadium tunnel again.

“I don’t feel like I’m done,” Rodgers admitted. “I’m going to put myself in a position to play again.”