Aaron Rodgers has Peyton Manning’s confidence that he will succeed with the New York Jets
Many New York Jets fans are not particularly happy with Peyton Manning.
After all, it was on his endorsement that the team hired Aaron Gase. This cast the team into one of the darkest two-year periods in its existence.
Fans will remind Manning that his last game with the Colts was a 16-14 defeat to the Jets in the 2010 playoffs.
Last season on “Manningcast,” Manning poked fun at the Jets for their play-calling in their Week 1 loss to Baltimore. This year, though, what Peyton has to say is far more complimentary.
“Rodgers will play fast”
Manning joined his former teammate on “The Pat McAfee Show.” McAfee asked Manning about what he thinks Aaron Rodgers can do with the Jets this year.
Peyton immediately pointed to the fact that Rodgers will be in the same system that he ran in Green Bay as a huge plus. He said he thinks Rodgers will play fast and loose from Day 1, reacting instinctively rather than having to learn a new playbook.
"I'm excited for Aaron Rodgers and the New York Jets..
The fact that he has the same system that he had in Green Bay is huge" ~ Peyton Manning#PMSLive pic.twitter.com/sTrnpJexiR
— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) May 2, 2023
Manning compared his own situation when he joined the Broncos in 2012 to Tom Brady’s when he first moved over to the Buccaneers in 2020.
When Peyton came to Denver, the Broncos told him to bring the list of plays he wanted to the team. They said they’d add plays that they thought would complement his skillset well. They worked together to get Manning comfortable and quickly up to speed. Manning finished second in the MVP voting that season, a year removed from a career-threatening neck injury.
By contrast, when Brady first came to Tampa, Bruce Arians was trying to force his own playbook. As a result, the Bucs’ offense seemed a little off-kilter for most of the season. It took until Brady grabbed the reins and did what he wanted for the offense to come together. It led to a Super Bowl victory.
In this sense, Nathaniel Hackett was not brought in just to lure Rodgers emotionally. He is also here to help Rodgers fit seamlessly into the offense. There likely would have been a steeper learning curve if Rodgers had gone anywhere else.
With most of the NFL and the media seemingly rooting for Rodgers to fail, one voice, at least, thinks he will succeed immediately.