When a Hall-of-Fame quarterback is on your roster, other top players around the league want to join him. That’s the reality the New York Jets currently find themselves – especially within the receiver position.
New York and former Pro Bowl wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. have a mutual interest to get a free agency deal done according to a report from Connor Hughes of SNY. Hughes went on to explain that OBJ and quarterback Aaron Rodgers “are close and have discussed playing together in New York. Basically, Rodgers wants OBJ” on Twitter late Wednesday evening.
Beckham Jr. is recovering from a Torn ACL he suffered in Super Bowl LVI. He did not play in 2022 while recovering from his injury although the Dallas Cowboys and New York Giants had interest later in the year.
Interest in the New York Jets has grown for one major reason – they are the team Aaron Rodgers wants to and probably will play for in 2023. After making his intentions known on the Pat McAfee show on March 15th, all that is left for Gang Green to do is find an agreement with Rodgers’ current team in Green Bay.
While a deal for the future Hall-of-Fame quarterback is expected to come at some point during the offseason, the ramifications of Rodgers’ announcement have already taken shape. The Jets are now considered a finalist for OBJ’s services when months ago they weren’t even rumored to be interested.
There are some trepidations for an OBJ reunion in the Big Apple though – even if it’s with the Jets. Beckham Jr. hasn’t recorded a 1,000-yard receiving season since 2019, and ACL injuries are very difficult to come back from. Most medical practitioners believe two full years is the needed recovery time for an injury of that magnitude.
But even if the former Giant and Brown want to make a return to the field, there is prior precedent of a player of his caliber making the kind of jump as he turns 30 years old – Randy Moss.
When Moss was traded to the Oakland Raiders, the future Hall-of-Famer was considered to be wasting his career away for three years. It wasn’t until Moss went to New England, and began working with Tom Brady, did the league’s top pass-catcher come back into his own dominating self.
Could a return of that form happen for Odell should he join the Jets? That’s where Aaron Rodgers comes in. Widely considered one of the most talented passers in league history, Rodgers could be to Odell what Brady was to Moss. In an offense with a top receiver already solidified in Garrett Wilson, the pressure of needing OBJ to produce right away wouldn’t be close to the demands Moss met in New England.
Just like any potential free agent signing, where there is smoke, there is usually fire. The Jets want to make Rodgers as comfortable as they can once a trade is completed and surrounding him with top talent is the first way to do so.
If OBJ can be the kind of veteran presence in the receiving room as well, the Jets would have enough firepower to even match the top offenses in the rest of their conference.
So goes the reason why having a franchise-altering quarterback is so important.
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