It’s been twelve years since the New York Jets were last in the playoffs. Now, after the trade of Aaron Rodgers, hopes have been reignited. How far can the Jets go this season?

It’s been over twelve years since the New York Jets have been in the playoffs. 2011 – of all years, the year Aaron Rodgers won his first and only Super Bowl with the Green Bay Packers after the 2010 NFL season.

Now the star quarterback is playing for the Jets and could ensure that the New Yorkers could finally achieve success again after a long wait. But where do the Jets take it with Rodgers? Will they make the playoffs and possibly even win the division? Is it all over after the regular season or will New York make it big?

Lack of quality at the QB position

Thanks to Rodgers, hopes in the “Big Apple” have at least been reawakened. But with that, so have expectations. But the trend of the past seasons does not exactly speak for the green franchise from New York. Only one of the past twelve seasons the Jets ended with a positive record (2015/10-6).

No wonder, one might almost say, when looking at the signal-callers of the respective seasons. Zach Wilson, Sam Darnold, Josh McCown, Ryan Fitzpatrick and Geno Smith, among others, were the names of the Jets quarterbacks over the past decade. All – at their respective times – decent playmakers – but nothing more.

Jets and the missing piece of the puzzle

For years, a good quarterback seemed to be something like the missing piece of the puzzle to finally make the playoffs again. As was the case this past season, when the Jets were 6-3 and 7-4 at times with Wilson and things actually looked good. But the fact that the season just featured Mike White and Joe Flacco in addition to Wilson shows the lack of continuity at the quarterback position.

Rodgers is supposed to close that construction site for at least the next two years and be that piece of the puzzle. And the other pieces of the puzzle? They are, upon closer inspection, of the requisite quality.

On defense, which is currently New York’s hobbyhorse, Sauce Gardner stands out in the secondary. The preseason Defensive Rookie of the Year is one of the best cornerbacks in the league. The Jets can therefore rely on their pass defense. The stats show that, too: the Jets allowed the third-fewest passing yards against in 2022 (3220) – and among the fewest passing touchdowns (15).

New York has a playoff squad

The Jets have been mediocre on defense against the run, but they have two absolute top players on the roster in defensive tackle Quinnen Williams and middle linebacker C.J. Mosley.

Offensively, the quality around the quarterback is also right. Finally, a Jets player also won the Offensive Rookie of the Year award. Wide receiver Garrett Wilson will be one of Rodgers’ key kickoff targets, and on top of that, he’ll be meeting an old acquaintance in New York. Allen Lazard was signed in the offseason – the receiver last played in Green Bay.

As for the running game, the Jets will also have top prospect Breece Hall back for the season. The running back suffered a serious knee injury last season and is not yet back to 100 percent.

What’s in it for the Jets?

So the potential for greater things seems to be there. There’s no question that this is also the case with four-time MVP Rodgers, despite his poor season last season. The only question is whether he can match his outstanding performances from previous years.

At stake for Rodgers is not just the Jets’ success, but his entire career. If he doesn’t deliver in New York, he would have to admit to himself that the Packers rightly no longer had confidence in him. After all, he perceived it that way before the move to the Jets.

But what if Rodgers does indeed become “Houdini” again? What’s in it then for the team coached by Head Coach Robert Saleh?

Great competition within the division

One look at the division is enough to tell you that it’s going to be tough here alone. The AFC East is without question one of the toughest in the NFL with the Miami Dolphins, Buffalo Bills and New England Patriots.

The Dolphins and Bills in particular are loaded with big stars like Tyreek Hill, Jalen Ramsey, Josh Allen and Von Miller. So for the division win, the Jets would have to put together a hammer season. But they don’t necessarily need this one to make the playoffs.

Should New York have a significant positive record for the first time in years, the postseason is more than just a long-awaited wish for Jets fans. After all, making the playoffs should be the absolute minimum goal for the Jets after the Rodgers deal.

Super Bowl mandatory for New York?

Anything less would be a disappointment. So would not reaching the Super Bowl, according to many a U.S. pundit. But are the Jets ready for the Super Bowl? Probably not. At least not yet this season.

The playoffs must be reached, without question – especially considering what the Jets sent to Green Bay for Rodgers:

A first-round pick (13), a second-round pick (42), a sixth-round pick (207) in this year’s draft and a future pick in 2024 (at least a second-round pick) traded by general manager Joe Douglas and Co. to the Packers in return for Rodgers and other picks. The franchise has thus gone more or less all-in.

Gardner believes in triumph

Therefore, at least in Rodgers’ second Jets season, the Super Bowl should be an issue. Otherwise, this deal will be debated for a long time to come.

At least someone has believed it will happen for some time. Gardner most recently posted a chat history with Rodgers in which he wrote that he wanted to win the Super Bowl with him.

Rodgers responded, “That would be a pretty cool story, right?”

But this year, the first priority for the quarterback and his new team is to make the playoffs – and that goal is anything but unrealistic. Even if many a Jets fan might find it hard to believe after twelve years without a postseason game.