Jets' Aaron Rodgers downplays minicamp absence, unsure if he'll play beyond 2024 season

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Until he retires, Aaron Rodgers will remain a topic of conversation, especially as long as he continues appearing behind microphones.

2024 could be a significant year for Rodgers as it might be his final one.

“I don’t know. I’m not sure,” Rodgers said during an appearance on the Pardon My Take podcast when asked how many more NFL seasons he had left in him. “This one, for sure. I wanted to do two good ones to give us a chance to retire a Jet, win two Super Bowls.”

The first stint of Rodgers with the Jets infamously concluded after just four plays because of a ruptured Achilles tendon. Almost a year ago, the excitement and positive energy around the Jets was abruptly drained from MetLife Stadium.

In the past, Rodgers may have felt differently, but now that he’s 40, he’s well aware of the inevitable toll of time. However, he likely still feels that he was unfairly deprived of one of those two critical years as he planned to end his career. If circumstances are favorable in 2024, this feeling could possibly keep him in the game for another year.

Just don’t anticipate him showing up for minicamp.

Rodgers was given the chance to air his own grievances with the current organized training activities and minicamp schedule during his podcast appearance, which also served as an explanation for why he wasn’t at New York’s mandatory period.

Rodgers clarified that during his early years in the NFC North, the concept of minicamp was very different. It consisted of five practices over three days. However, the current scenario is different. Now it’s not specifically minicamp, they can designate any week of the OTAs as ‘minicamp week’, making it more compulsory than other weeks. But in actuality, it’s just part of the OTA schedule.

Words can sometimes be misleading. They can morph a story about me missing two OTA days into one about missing a minicamp. Yet, I attended the first 10.

Simply put, it wasn’t a significant issue. However, due to Rodgers continuing to be a controversial figure, his absence turned into a headline.

Fortunately, the focus will soon shift to actual football games. Rodgers is determined this time to stay in the limelight for more than just the four snaps he took in Week 1.