Don’t be the fantasy football player that follows bad advice and sleeps on one of the all-time greats.
Aaron Rodgers had a very forgettable 2023 NFL season, his first with the New York Jets. Just four plays into the season, Rodgers was sacked and stayed down on the turf in the season opener against the Buffalo Bills. He was carted off and it was later revealed that he had ruptured his Achilles tendon, though fans knew his season was over just by the look on his face when he left the field.
Rodgers was forgotten for the rest of the year as the Jets struggled to the finish line. Now at 40 years old, he is being written off after coming off such a horrendous injury and playing for a team that hasn’t been too competitive for quite some time.
I warn fantasy football players right now, don’t be that guy.
Instead, you should have a lot of confidence in Rodgers for a number of reasons. For one, there is a chance that if the Jets were in a better position last season, he might have made an unprecedented return to the field LAST season. So, there is no need to worry about the lingering effects of this injury. He’s ready to play.
In addition, he is surrounded by a pretty good supporting cast. The Jets have Breece Hall and Garrett Wilson, two of the better young skill players in the entire league. The addition of Mike Williams gives Rodgers a big-bodied target who could be a major red-zone weapon.
Finally, this is Aaron Rodgers and regardless of how you feel about him on a personal level (he seems to draw a lot of hate), he is one of the most determined athletes in any sport that we have ever seen. He plays with a constant chip on his shoulder and that is going to get even bigger as he attempts to come back from this injury. There is a list of athletes who love to shove it in their critics’ faces, usually successfully, and Rodgers is on that list.
So as you look over the most recent QB rankings posted by Fantasy Pros, you should be in disbelief over where they have Rodgers positioned.
Derek Brown has him at No. 16 but the other three guys have him in the 20s. Andrew Erickson has him at No. 29. Are you kidding?
Baker Mayfield had a huge season that came out of the blue last year and Brock Purdy continues to silence doubters with his play. I’m not drafting either of them over Rodgers.
Anthony Richardson is an exciting young player and rookies Caleb Williams and Jayden Daniels have a world of potential, but taking them over Rodgers, even if he is nearly twice their age, is a bad idea.
Guys like Jared Goff and Trevor Lawrence go back and forth between good games and bad ones but both are generally good to have on your fantasy roster. Yet, I’d rather have Rodgers over both of them, easily.
That is just a handful of players on this list. Many of the QBs are ranked at the right spot, but the list of guys I would draft ahead of Rodgers would be pretty short. History is telling and though age is undefeated, fantasy football players who have thrown in the towel on Rodgers are going to regret that choice.