An ex-New England Patriots icon has slammed Aaron Rodgers for skipping the New York Jets‘ preseason minicamp as bad optics, adding that Tom Brady would never have done such a thing even if he was injured.
Rodgers, who joined the franchise in 2023 before missing the season after sustaining a serious injury in the first game of the campaign, took an unexcused absence from their mandatory camp recently, leading to widespread criticism of the quarterback.
Aaron Rodgers time in the league makes teammates and reporters laugh during press conference
Although the Jets insisted they’re aware of the reasons but will still proceed with disciplinary action, Rodgers has not got the heat off his back and Julian Edelman, who played as a receiver for the Patriots from 2009-2020, is the latest to speak out against him.
“I know a lot of people do things differently,” Edelman told The Herd. “But god forbid the New York Jets start 1-3 in the beginning of the season – they start with the [San Francisco 49ers] Niners, Tennessee [Titans], the Patriots [and the Denver Broncos].
“If they go 1-3, this is going to be such a big distraction for that locker room because everyone’s going to be talking about it. If they start 4-0, no one’s going to care. This is the NFL.
“It’s a bad look for your leader, for whatever reason, to go on an unexcused absence. I was with Tom Brady. In his later years, he started missing OTAs here and there but he never missed a mandatory minicamp. I just thought it was a bad look.”
How much will Rodgers be fined?
A Super Bowl champion with the Green Bay Packers, Rodgers was brought to the Jets to replace Zach Wilson as the lead QB at the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey but suffered an Achilles injury in Game 1 against the Buffalo Bills meaning he was done for the year.
As a result, the Jets went on to finish with a 7-10 record and below .500 for the eighth year in a row as Wilson and Tim Boyle failed to impress. But with Rodgers back from injury now, expectations are high again so it’s understandable fans are upset.
So, with disciplinary action essentially a foregone conclusion at this point, Rodgers will need to fork out around $50,000 for missing the June 11-13 minicamp as part of the Collective Bargaining Agreement, although on a contract worth $112.5m with the Jets, it’s a drop in the ocean for him.
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