Aaron Rodgers was deemed not a fit at quarterback for the New York Jets heading into 2025 by the new regime.
The Jets better know what they passed up on. ESPN NFL Insider Jeremy Fowler revealed his top 10 quarterback rankings ahead of training camp based on a panel of league execs, coaches, and scouts.
While Rodgers didn’t receive placement in the top 10 nor the honorable mention section, he did receive top 10 votes at the QB position.
Heading into last year, Rodgers was ranked the No. 8 best QB in the NFL.
“Rodgers proved he could still play at age 40 and coming off an Achilles injury, with rather impressive looking traditional numbers (3,897 yards, 28 TD, 11 INT) and a handful of vintage Rodgers performances. But he also finished 25th in QBR, and the Jets were finished by October, so a place outside the top 10 is more than appropriate for the future Hall of Famer. Rodgers signed a one-year, $13.65 million contract with the Steelers in June and said 2025 would likely be his final NFL season,” Fowler explained.
Rodgers’ Overall Numbers Were Gaudy for the Jets, but They Need Context
When you evaluate the raw numbers from Rodgers on the Jets in 2024, they appear very impressive.
Rodgers started all 17 games, completed 63% of his passes, threw for 3,897 passing yards, and finished with a 28 touchdown to 11 interception ratio.
He is the first Jets quarterback to start a full regular season since Ryan Fitzpatrick in 2015.
Rodgers threw for the third most passing yards, third most passing touchdowns, and had the sixth best completion percentage (minimum 10 games started) in a single season in Jets franchise history.
That sounds good, but that doesn’t paint the full story.
Rodgers had 584 passing attempts last season, the second most in football, only behind Joe Burrow of the Cincinnati Bengals, per ESPN.
Why did he throw the ball that much? The Jets finished with a 5-12 record. Rodgers got more opportunities than nearly every QB in the league because the Jets were always down in games, which allowed him to pad his stats.
Rodgers threw 19 of his 28 total touchdown passes when he was inside the opponent’s red zone, per the NFL Media Group. Another layer of stat padding that makes the overall numbers look better without knowing the context.
Jets Made a QB Swap This Offseason With a Lot of Mystery Involved
Regardless of how good or bad Rodgers played during the 2024 season, he was a known commodity. A future Pro Football Hall of Famer, a four-time NFL MVP, and someone the team rallied around.
When Rodgers walks into an NFL locker room, he has instant credibility because of his resume. The same can’t be said for the Jets’ new QB1, Justin Fields. He is on his third team in three years.
The Jets passed on a known quality, for better or for worse, for one shrouded in mystery.
Fields unsurprisingly wasn’t featured in Fowler’s top 10 QB list, nor the honorable mention section, nor did he receive any top 10 votes.
He only started in six games this past season for the Pittsburgh Steelers before he was benched for Russell Wilson.
In Week 1 of 2025, Fields has a chance to show Pittsburgh what it missed out on and, simultaneously, can show the Jets that they made the right decision this offseason.
No pressure.
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