National Football League

Are Aaron Rodgers, New York Jets true Super Bowl contenders this season?

Updated Jul. 26, 2024 12:32 p.m. ET

Aaron Rodgers recently told reporters that his New York Jets are "one of those eight to 12 teams that can actually" make it to Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans at the season's end. What's more, reports have emerged that the Jets would likely be able to make the playoffs and win it all if they averaged at least 17 points a game and keep their elite defense intact.

Craig Carton pointed out that this prediction is very telling ahead of the start of the 2024 season.

"That's not a lot of points for a team to have to score," he said on Thursday's "The Carton Show." "It shows you the respect that people have for this defense. You can make an argument [that] they've got the best defensive line, … the best secondary and [that] their linebackers are top-10."

Still, the verdict is out on whether the Jets are really Super Bowl contenders this year, and Colin Cowherd isn't sold.

"In my entire life, there's never been 12 teams that can win a Super Bowl," he said on Thursday's edition of "The Herd." "It's usually about seven to eight. … [The last eight teams that won a Super Bowl] don't have impulsive ownership that often feels like the franchise is in chaos. You do with the Jets. And all those teams had at least been to a Super Bowl — many had won a Super Bowl — in the previous 20 years. The Jets haven't.

"The Jets do have, however, things that Super Bowl teams have. They have an elite quarterback … [and] a potentially good defense if they sign Haason Reddick. … What I think historically gets in the way of teams like the Jets is [that] they don't have any momentum … and I don't trust their ownership, but I do think they're close. If the offensive line stays healthy [and] if Aaron is upright, I think they're battling for a postseason [berth] in Week 16, 17."

The Jets finished this past season with a 7-10 record, with most of their wins being attributed to their stellar defense that allowed 20.9 points per game. Rodgers ruptured his Achilles tendon just four snaps into the 2023 season opener and missed the remainder of the season. New York went on to use three other quarterbacks that season.

The Jets, who have the fourth-easiest schedule in 2024, are projected to win 9.5 games this season. If New York were to reach double-digit wins this season, it would mark the first time the team has done so in nearly a decade — since 2015.

All eyes will be on the 40-year-old Rodgers this season after his abrupt exit in 2023, and fans will have to wait and see what New York has up its sleeve. In the meantime, the four-time NFL MVP has been impressing at training camp, with a video of him connecting with star receiver Garrett Wilson on a 75-yard touchdown pass going viral this week.

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