Jets owner Woody Johnson fired coach Robert Saleh on Oct. 8 following a 2-3 record, believing the team was underachieving.
Following Saleh’s firing, the Jets finished 3-9 under interim coach Jeff Ulbrich and 5-12 overall.
Johnson also fired general manager Joe Douglas amid a disappointing season. When Johnson fired Saleh, he believed the Jets were one of the best rosters he has had since becoming owner in 2000.
Heading into an offseason full of uncertainty, Johnson spoke to the media after Sunday’s game against Miami and said he was happy the Jets ended the season positively despite a disappointing year.
“Everybody thought this was going to — not just me, [everybody] thought we were talented,” Johnson told reporters following the Jets 32-20 victory against the Dolphins. “All the networks that are paying millions of dollars, they put us in five prime times, six prime time [games].
“So everybody thought this was going to be unbelievable. So from that standpoint, yeah, we didn’t live up to that early opinion of virtually everybody, but we ended up well because I don’t care about anything else. But a win at the end was good. So we beat ‘em today. They played well, they didn’t give up. Everybody showed up and we did some really nice things.”
After they acquired Aaron Rodgers in a trade with the Packers in 2023, the Jets were pegged as Super Bowl contenders. Many believed that with Rodgers still playing at a high level along with the Jets’ defense, which was a top-five unit, they would end their long-dreaded playoff drought.
But Rodgers tore his Achilles four plays into his debut on Sept. 11, 2023, and missed the rest of that season. The Jets finished 7-10 and missed the playoffs once again.
The 2024 season was supposed to be different after Rodgers returned from his Achilles tear. However, after battling ankle, hamstring, and knee injuries, Rodgers’ play was uneven at times, so much so that Johnson suggested benching him following the Jets’ Week 4 loss to the Broncos, according to sources.
Despite all the adversity the Jets faced and their 14th consecutive season of missing the postseason, Rodgers, 41, threw for 3,897 yards, 28 touchdowns, and 11 interceptions. Now, Johnson and the new general manager will have to decide Rodgers’ fate.
Truthfully, the Jets were worse with Rodgers under center than they were without him under previous starter Zach Wilson. Gang Green gave Rodgers everything he wanted from acquiring his friends [Davante Adams, Allen Lazard, Randall Cobb] and made additions on both sides of the ball, hoping they could make a run at a Super Bowl.
But the team was eliminated from playoff contention before Christmas.
Rodgers is under contract for 2025 but has zero money remaining on his contract. If the Jets release Rodgers, they will absorb a $49 million salary cap charge that they could split between the 2025 and 2026 seasons.
“I don’t know, I honestly don’t know,” Rodgers said after Sunday’s game. “If I did, I don’t know that I’d tell you, so I will say that out of respect, but truthfully, I don’t know.
“I’m looking forward to those conversations with Woody (Johnson) and Christopher (Johnson) and Hymie (Elhai) and Phil (Savage) and anybody else. It feels good to be able to do some of the things the last five or six weeks that I knew I was capable of doing even at 40, 41, but either way I won’t be upset or offended.”
Rodgers could also opt to retire from the game altogether. He told reporters last week that he would take his time after the season to determine if he wants to continue playing.
Rodgers had one of his best games of the season against the Dolphins on Sunday. He finished 23-of-36 for 274 yards, four touchdowns, and one interception. He also threw his 500th career touchdown pass during the second quarter to tight end Tyler Conklin. Rodgers became the fifth quarterback in NFL history to achieve that mark.
With a new front office and head coach coming to the Jets next season, Rodgers knows his future is out of his control.
The Jets have already begun interviewing candidates for their coaching and general manager roles. Last week, the Jets interviewed both former Panthers and Commanders coach Ron Rivera and former Titans coach Mike Vrabel for the coaching position and will interview ex-Jets coach Rex Ryan on Tuesday.
So far, Former Falcons GM Thomas Dimitroff, former Titans GM Jon Robinson, Senior Bowl director Jim Nagy, and ESPN analyst Louis Reddick have interviewed for the Jets general manager position. A new general manager and coach could possibly choose a younger approach at quarterback and not bring back Rodgers, who will be 42 next December.
But he said hypothetically that if the Jets want to move on and he doesn’t opt to retire, he could see himself playing for another team.
“There’s obviously a lot of hypotheticals here,” Rodgers said. “If I want to play—hypothetical number one. If they want to move on—hypothetical number two. Would I be willing to play for another team—hypothetical number three.
“The answer is yes.”
