The expectations around New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers going into this season really aren't much different from last season, at least from his perspective.
He was expected to make the Jets a playoff team last year. The same is true this year.
But the lead-up from last year to this year is far different.
There were few questions around Rodgers’ health last year. But on the fourth play of the season opener on Monday Night Football, Rodgers, then 39 years old, tore his Achilles tendon.
That ended his season and the Jets went down with him, finishing 7-11 for the second straight year.
Now, nearly a year after the injury, Rodgers has declared himself fully healthy. But now, going into another Monday Night Football opener, this time against the San Francisco 49ers, the questions are different.
What can fans expect from a 40-year-old quarterback coming off one of the most dangerous injuries to a football player, in terms of future effectiveness? Can he recapture the form that made him an All-Pro? Does he need to hit that level to get the Jets to the playoffs? How quickly can he shake the rust off after not playing in the preseason?
Those are all valid questions. But, during his session with the media on Thursday, he made it clear that his expectations for himself are as sky-high as they have ever been. In fact, he summed it up in one word — greatness.
"I have a lot of pride in my performance, so when I take the field, I expect greatness because I've done it before," he said to reporters, including ESPN. "So that's the kind of standard I hold myself to."
It’s not that quarterbacks haven’t played after tearing their Achilles. Atlanta’s Kirk Cousins is doing the same thing this year with the Falcons. But Cousins is four years younger.
The most notable comparison, given the high level of Rodgers’ play for his career, is Pro Football Hall of Famer Dan Marino. He suffered the same injury in 1993 and returned the next season. He threw for 4,453 yards and 30 touchdowns to earn NFL Comeback Player of the Year honors. He was 32.
Vinny Testaverde tore his with the Jets in 1999 at 36. He returned the next year to throw for 3,732 yards, 21 touchdowns and 25 interceptions.
What Rodgers is attempting has not only been done, but it’s been done at a high level by a comparable quarterback.
If he matches what Marino did, or even what Testaverde did, the Jets could be in a playoff hunt for the first time in more than a decade.
