Regardless of their record, the quarterback of the New York Jets thinks that every win matters just the same.
After the game, Aaron Rodgers said he valued beating the Jaguars on Sunday despite not being alive for the playoffs.
“They’re all special. That’s why you play. You play for the love of the game and to have moments like this with your boys. To be able to come up big. We haven’t had a lot of success…if you love this game, there’s nothing like dominating,” said Rodgers.
“If you’re a hyper-competitive person, whether you’re growing up playing in the backyard, playing in the playground at school, or playing flag football, you love dominating. That’s what it’s all about. Today was one of those good feelings.”
He added that even if the performance was “Too little, too late,” it still felt “special” to win.
“Doesn’t taint it at all. Doesn’t steal any of the joy of it. It doesn’t take away any of the fun that will be on the bus just now and then on the plane. Then, we have another bus to get back to the facility. But it’s still going to be special. They’re always special.”
Wide receiver Davante Adams, who had an elite performance on Sunday (9 catches for 198 yards and 2 touchdowns), expressed similar sentiments during his press conference.
“I mean, winning is hard in this league. It’s tough. Like you say, we haven’t been getting blown out. I think the Cardinals is the only game you can say we were out of it. And even then, I felt like we just were so close, we were even driving that game,” said Adams.
“So it’s about executing at the right moments, and we did that today. And in the past, somebody didn’t, whether it was offense, defense, special teams, or whatever. And, you know, you need all three phases.”
Rodgers and Adams’ words are a good reminder that winning at the NFL level is extremely hard. It takes everyone and everything to win consistently, and if even one aspect is out of sorts, everything can fall apart.
The Jets have faced a great deal of adversity in 2024 and have lost in multiple crushing ways. As a result, it is good to see players such as Rodgers and Adams cherish one of the few positive moments of this season.
