New York Jets Continue to Be a National Embarrassment

I did not want the New York Jets to sign Aaron Rodgers. The Jets already signed an aging Green Bay Packers QB. Brett Favre had a good run and then ran into a wall. He was soon gone and finished elsewhere. Then, he had other problems. But, that is another story.

The Jets have a playoff (maybe more) caliber defense. The defense that will win games for you. The team needed a decent QB of a reasonable age. There are multiple QBs of that caliber available. The team could have been a very good team for years. 

The team went another way. Aaron "vax opponent" Rodgers rubbed our noses in it by getting injured after a few plays. Nonetheless, I think it would have been a bad move regardless. And, at his age, turf or no turf (talk about scapegoating), an injury was a reasonable likelihood. Also, at his age, how long would he last? In a couple years, the Jets could be back to square one. Furthermore, if he did well, draft-wise it would be harder to get a QB.

Rodgers also brought another albatross: Nathaniel Hacket. He has a prime excuse now with a bunch of injuries. But, teams have injuries. Yes, the Jets have A LOT. He still stinks. We knew this coming in. The only reason to get him was because Rodgers likes him. What happens if he is not playing? Was there no other way to get Rodgers? It all reeks of desperation.

The NY Jets set themselves to fail. They refused to face up to the situation. They showed how little trust Zack Wilson had by benching him last season. Fine. You had to have a reliable backup. Team after team in the NFL had quarterbacks going down. A reliable backup with the Jets' defense could carry the team. It would at the very least result in credible play.  

The Jets, helped by Buffalo's own issues, managed to win the first game. The Jets battled with two teams (Denver and the Giants) to see who could lose the games. Somehow they managed to score enough points to beat the Eagles. Still, the team is lucky to have four wins. 

Easy could have two or three. And, schedule makers expected Rodgers. So, the Jets can embarrass themselves in prime time or nationwide (the first Black Friday game) situations. This time, they somehow managed to have a "pick six" on an end-of-the-half Hail Mary. 

The defense gave the team two turnovers (one a pick-six; the other mid-field with two seconds to play as Miami rushed to score three) and the team came out of it -1 (they missed an XP, so the touchdowns didn't offset). Since Hail Marys have been recorded as a state (2006 by one account), no one remembers this happening. Impressive. 

There will be a limited number of opportunities. Hail Marys often occur at the end of games where a runback would make limited sense. Some have little chance of being caught. The usual situation is a fight for the ball with the defense batting the ball away or knocking the person down in the end zone. A defender going 100 yards with the ball is not very likely.  

The problem here is not just Aaron Rodgers. The team has been a mess for too long to put it in the hands of any one person. The fans have a reason to be pissed off. Other teams struggling have fired people, including coordinators or head coaches. This is sometimes just something you do. There is a cause to suggest someone is being made a scapegoat.

Not quite true here. Nathaniel Hackett being fired would gain some justifiable positivity from the fans. Tim Boyle, no savior (he isn't meant to be; he's a third-string QB), was cheered by the fans happy to see an unqualified QB (even if he teases with good play here or there) gone. What? Aaron Rodgers will refuse to play the second year of his contract if Hackett is fired? Maybe tell him that NH is vaxxed or something.

The NY Giants received a scheduling gift by having the Commanders (the Jets have them too) come in. Tommy "not Danny's son" DeVito actually had a chance. Now people are talking of him being a possible QB of the future. Calm down, guys. Miami was going to be a loss. Still, they had a shot at a reasonable score. At least, a 10-6 half.

They went another way. Time for a change. And, they should not have signed Rodgers. I said so before the season.