The New York Jets believe they have found their franchise quarterback when they selected Zach Wilson with the No. 2 overall pick in this past year’s NFL draft.
While the stats were uneven in his rookie campaign, there is a lot of hope and optimism that the arrow is pointing in the right direction heading into the offseason.
Although not everyone is drinking the Kool-Aid on Wilson being the Jets savior.
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Vegas Is Thinking of a Blockbuster Addition
According to the folks over at BetSided, the Jets are one of the betting favorites to trade for Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers this offseason.
The other teams that are ahead of the Jets include the Philadelphia Eagles (+150), Denver (+150) Broncos, and the Pittsburgh Steelers (+400).
All three of those teams have uncertain futures with their quarterback situations, but the Jets certainly stand out from the rest of the list.
Brian Giuffra who put the odds together for BetSided explained why the Jets had such high odds:
“The Jets have two picks in the top-10 of the 2022 NFL draft and four in the top-40. That’s going to be enticing for the Packers. They also have a ton of cap space (over $47 million), which should be enticing for Rodgers. They also have a quarterback they just drafted No. 2 overall and not enough talent to become instant Super Bowl contenders. Still, the Jets traded for Brett Favre and perhaps they go all-in for another Packers QB being replaced by a young signal-caller.”
On paper, all of the Jets’ picks should be attractive to Green Bay, and all of the cap space for Rodgers to field a competitive team around him on Gang Green would also be tasty.
However, the Jets would have to give up a king’s ransom to land Rodgers (thus lessening their ability to build around him) and a lot of that cap space would disappear the moment A-Rod is traded over because of his monster contract.
Also, that final point on the Jets trading for a Packers quarterback in the past could mean they could do it again doesn’t make any sense.
At that point in time, the Jets were a quarterback away in 2008 and they decided to go all in. Although there were several differences from that situation versus the current one the Jets sit in.
Their former quarterback Chad Pennington was 32 years old and the ability to move on was on the table.
On top of that, they didn’t have to give up a lot to acquire Favre (a conditional draft pick that became a third-rounder) versus a monster haul that would likely feature at least one first-round draft choice in any hypothetical Rodgers trade.
Doesn’t Make Any Sense
Prior to the Jets turning in the draft card for the former BYU passer, everything was on the table for the team.
They were heavily involved in the Deshaun Watson sweepstakes and up until draft day last season even Rodgers was on the table. All of that talk now is nothing more than a wild fantasy.
Financially the Jets are committed to Wilson for the foreseeable future. If the green and white moved on from the former BYU stud this offseason they would eat a $28.8 million dead cap hit.
On top of that, they aren’t a quarterback away, they need to use all of their resources on building up the entire roster.
With all of the draft picks and cap space, there is a legitimate belief inside the building that the Jets can take a major leap next season.
While the Rodgers betting odds are certainly surprising, the Jets are fully in on developing their 22-year-old quarterback.
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Jets Given Surprising Odds to Land Aaron Rodgers in 2022