Injured Aaron Rodgers was pictured arriving at MetLife Stadium on Friday in all black clothing as he prepares to watch the NFL’s first-ever Black Friday game from the sideline.
Rodgers tore his Achilles in the Jets’ season-opener against the Buffalo Bills and is desperately trying to defy all expectations by returning this season.
It emerged on Thursday night that Rodgers has ‘changed his mind’ this week and will still try and return to the field this season, even if the New York Jets are out of playoff contention by then.
That update came just days after the quarterback told Pat McAfee he’ll soon return to practice.
Speaking on the network’s Thanksgiving pregame show, Thursday, Fox Sports’ Jay Glazer – a former New York Post columnist – said: ‘I was told originally, ”Look if they are out of playoff contention then Aaron is probably not going to try and come back.”
Injured Aaron Rodgers was pictured arriving at MetLife Stadium on Friday in all black clothing
‘Well, that changed this past week…
‘I think Aaron, even if they’re out of it, still wants to show he was able to come back faster from that Achilles tear, faster than pretty much any quarterback ever.’
Two days prior to Glazer’s update, Rodgers said on McAfee’s show on ESPN that he’d ‘love to be trending towards practicing by my birthday,’ which is December 2.
Rodgers showed no obvious sign of his injury as he marched down the tunnel at MetLife Stadium towards the locker room.
He has been at several previous Jets games and was seen throwing balls during warm-ups against the Chargers over two weeks ago.
The Jets certainly need him. Against the Dolphins on Friday, coach Robert Saleh will start third-string quarterback Tim Boyle after benching Zach Wilson.
Gang Green is on a three-game losing streak and Wilson was removed from center in the second half of last week’s 32-6 loss to the Bills.
Rodgers has ‘changed his mind’ this week and will still try and return to the field this season
Before that game, the Jets last scored a touchdown in a 13-10 win against the New York Giants on October 29.
If Rodgers plays again this season, then he will have defied all expectations.
It usually takes at least six months to recover from the injury, regardless of his age – 40 – being taken into consideration.
The title for the quickest return from an Achilles tear in the league belongs to Cam Akers.
The 24-year-old Minnesota Vikings running back recovered from the injury, considered to be major in any sport, inside five and a half months.