Former Jets linebacker Jonathan Vilma thinks it’s time for Aaron Rodgers to hold up his cleats.
Vilma, now an analyst on Fox’s NFL broadcasts alongside Kenny Albert, expressed an understanding of why Rodgers would need to go on the market and provides it one other go throughout the 2025 season, however felt that sticking across the recreation might affect the way in which he’s remembered.
Rodgers, 41, has not been the identical participant he as soon as was throughout his tenure with the Jets because the groups sits at 4-11 after not having the ability to shut out quite a few tight video games within the fourth quarter.
A part of that has been as a result of he suffered a season-ending damage on the primary drive as a Jet final season.
“The fan in me says yes, he should retire because I want to remember Aaron Rodgers when I went against him as one of the best quarterbacks ever to play the game,” Vilma stated in an interview with SportsLens. “I simply bear in mind staying up late at evening, shaking my head as a result of you may’t cease him. You may sluggish him down. You may hope he would have an off day. However you couldn’t cease him. And it was essentially the most irritating factor as a result of taking part in in opposition to guys like him, Tom Brady in his prime, Drew Brees after I practiced in opposition to him, it’s so irritating since you are actually attempting your finest and it’s nonetheless not ok and you need to hope that his finest isn’t there that day with a view to win.
“So that’s how I want to remember him. I don’t want to remember him as this guy who doesn’t look like himself. Everyone’s saying he doesn’t look like himself. I don’t know what the issues are, but as a fan, I always want to remember the greatness of that guy, of that player. As an athlete being in his shoes, I’ve had friends, myself where there’s part of me that said – I had my daughter at the time, she was young, it’s time to move on and get off the train, think about family life, hanging out with my daughter, enjoying it, had a great career.”
Rodgers has been coy about his plans for the longer term and whether or not he’ll be a Jet subsequent season — if Gang Inexperienced’s new GM and head coach even need him again.
The longer term Corridor-of-Famer stated throughout his weekly look on “The Pat McAfee Show” that he might see a world the place “they just say, ‘Hey, thank you, we’re going to go in another direction’ on January 6th.”
The Rodgers-led Jets are destined for one more 12 months and not using a postseason look and end out the season with video games in opposition to the Payments and Dolphins.
