Aaron Rodgers finally threw his first touchdown for the New York Jets and it couldn’t have come at a better time for the team that was trailing against the San Francisco 49ers on Monday night.
The Jets offense scored the game’s first touchdown – a Breece Hall rush into the end zone to make it 7-3 – but the 49ers held the lead until Rodgers broke loose late in the third quarter at Levi’s Stadium.
Then, after the 49ers’ right side was sidelined by a hard kick, Rodgers had a clear shot and knew exactly what to do with it.
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New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers (8) warms up before the game against the San Francisco 49ers at Levi’s Stadium. (Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images)
He threw a pass to veteran receiver Allen Lazard, his old teammate on the Green Bay Packers who had followed him to the Jets last season, and Lazard ran the ball into the end zone to make the score 26-13.
The 36-yard touchdown pass is what the Jets and their fans have been waiting for for the past 500-plus days, during which Rodgers has been unable to play for the team due to a torn Achilles tendon that occurred on the fourth snap of his 2023 home debut.
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It was an absolutely devastating moment at MetLife Stadium this time last year when the Jets faced the Buffalo Bills.
Rodgers, who had run onto the field waving an American flag, limped off the field with an Achilles tendon injury that would sideline him for the rest of the season.
New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers (8) stands on the field before the game against the San Francisco 49ers at Levi’s Stadium. (Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images)
But since that moment, Rodgers has worked hard to return to the field and at the end of last season there was even talk that he might be fit to play.
However, Jets fans had to wait the entire offseason and training camp to finally see Rodgers back in action.
There may have been a collective sigh of relief after he survived the first few series on Monday night, but Rodgers and the Jets were down a game against the defending NFC champions, and his first touchdown pass couldn’t have come at a better time to make the game even more exciting in the second half.
New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers (8) warms up before the game against the San Francisco 49ers at Levi’s Stadium. (Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images)
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With that first success achieved, Rodgers and the Jets hope there will be many more to come this season, where the goal is to end a 13-year playoff drought.
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