Aaron Rodgers technically enters his second season with the New York Jets. However, he suffered an extremely early exit during the first game of the 2023 season with a torn achilles. Rodgers signed with the Jets last offseason after spending his entire 18 year career with the Green Bay Packers. He signed a three year deal worth $112 million, with $75 million guaranteed.
The former Cal Bear is entering his 20th season in the league, accumulating 59,055 yards, 475 touchdowns, and 105 interceptions. He ranks ninth all-time in career passing yards and should pass Dan Marino and Matt Ryan to move into seventh with a healthy 2024 season. He is also currently fifth all-time in passing touchdowns.
Initially the 24th overall selection in the 2005 NFL Draft, Rodgers was thought by many to be the best quarterback in the draft. He famously sat in the green room during the draft after fellow QB Alex Smith went number one overall to the San Francisco 49ers.
Is a comeback season in the offing for one of the greatest to play the position? Can he return to form after last season’s brutal injury?
Aaron Rodgers 2023 Stats and Fantasy Production
In 2023, Rodgers only attempted one pass for New York before tearing his achilles. From there, the Jets’ season failed to get off the ground. A mixture of Zach Wilson, Trevor Siemian, and Tim Boyle somehow squeezed out seven wins.
Dating back to 2022, Rodgers actually had the worst full season of his illustrious career. His 3,695 yards and 26 touchdowns were his lowest totals. The future Hall of Famer played in all 17 games but didn’t look like his former self.
During the 2022 season, Rodgers finished as the overall QB14. However, three QBs (Dak Prescott, Lamar Jackson, and Kyler Murray) all missed games and would have likely finished above Rodgers if healthy. Seemingly, age has caught up with him and his injury is a lingering concern moving forward.
Aaron Rodgers 2024 Fantasy Outlook
Even though this is technically Rodgers’ second season with the New York Jets, in all reality it will be his first since he missed all of 2023 with a torn achilles tendon. There is a ton of hope and optimism surrounding the Jets going into the 2024 season, as Rodgers is the best quarterback the franchise has ever had…even though he hasn’t completed a pass for the team.
According to FantasyPros, Rodgers is projected as the 126th overall pick and the 20th quarterback off the board in standard leagues. In Full PPR, his ADP is 163rd overall and the 21st highest-drafted quarterback. In Half PPR, the Jets’ signal caller is projected as the 138th pick and the 20th quarterback off the board.
Entering 2024, I project Aaron Rodgers to throw for 3,800+ yards with 30 touchdowns and 8 interceptions with a full 17 game season. A touchdown or two on the ground is plausible also. He is projected as an early tenth-round pick in 1QB leagues. In SuperFlex leagues I would have projected in the sixth or seventh round.
Final Thoughts
Rodgers is 40 years old going into the season and will turn 41 in December as the season is coming to a close. Coming off this type of injury at his advanced age, expectations should be tempered. Even before the substantial injury, he was coming off the worst statistical season of his career in 2022. Maybe he has found some rejuvenation after leaving Green Bay and recovering from the torn achilles.
With a true number one wide receiver in Garrett Wilson, Rodgers has his guy. The Jets also brought in often injured wide receiver Mike Williams from the Los Angeles Chargers to be a solid number two if he can stay relatively healthy. Tight End Tyler Conklin is coming off the best season of his career in terms of receptions and yardage. A healthy Aaron Rodgers should help the emerging tight end find the end zone quite a bit more than last season when he didn’t score at all.
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