There may not be a non-playoff team from last season under more pressure to turn things around than the New York Jets this season.
With All-Pros stationed at almost every position, the Jets are in a spot to not only end the longest current postseason drought in American sports, but compete for their first championship since Joe Namath shocked the world in 1968-69.
With those expectations, though, comes a large amount of pressure, and almost everyone is feeling it in Florham Park.
5 Jets Under Most Pressure This Season
New York’s cast of talented characters leaves plenty of athletes under more pressure than most due to differing circumstances. For one, not everyone is entering a contract year or nearing the twilight of their NFL journey.
Still, five Jets players are under more pressure than anyone else this season.
Let’s take a look at each of them here.
Aaron Rodgers
Aaron Rodgers has done it all in his NFL career. So why is he under any sort of pressure at this point?
The reality is, he’s trying to prove millions of people wrong.
Rodgers is not only trying to prove that he can still be an elite quarterback at 40 years old, but doing so immediately following a season-ending torn Achilles suffered in the opening week of the regular season last year. Taking charge of a snake-bitten franchise like the Jets adds even more pressure on a quarterback.
For the four-time NFL MVP, numbers won’t be the only thing he needs to put up. This Jets team has been devoid of a franchise quarterback who can win playoff games on their own for decades. A Super Bowl is the only thing worth comparing to right now for the former Packer.
And for that reason, he is the player under the most pressure in 2024.
Will McDonald IV
It’s almost unfair to claim that a second-year edge rusher is under more pressure than almost any other defensive player on the Jets, but that’s the reality for McDonald.
The former Iowa State product was seen as a reach when he was taken last year with the 15th overall pick instead of wide receivers like Zay Flowers.
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While he put up more sacks in his rookie season (3) than Jermaine Johnson (2.5), McDonald is under heavy pressure from the team and fanbase to show he can be an every-down defender like his counterpart and dominate at a level that will make people forget about passing on a receiver.
Alijah Vera-Tucker
When healthy, Vera-Tucker has shown to be one of the best offensive linemen in the entire NFL. The problem is exactly that: health.
AVT has played in just 12 games in the last two seasons combined due to back-to-back season-ending Achilles injuries being suffered in Denver.
More importantly, Vera-Tucker is entering the final two seasons of his contract with the Jets and is eligible for an extension right now. If he’s able to stay healthy and remain effective, then the USC product could be in line for a massive payday coming up.
Anything less, and there could be talks of the Jets simply moving on after his rookie contract ends and restarting the offensive line quest.
C.J. Mosley
Mosley is 32 years old and may still be playing at an elite level, but Father Time comes for everyone.
Towards the end of the season, the All-Pro linebacker appeared to lose a step — particularly in pass coverage.
It doesn’t help that his future replacement, Jamien Sherwood, has looked like the best linebacker during training camp to this point.
Mosley is an incredible leader and a true force on the Jets’ defense. Replacing him would never be easy, but the fact of the matter is that the older the linebacker gets, the slower he will look.
Mosely is under tremendous pressure to show time hasn’t hit him just yet.
Sauce Gardner
Is it insane that the first cornerback to be named a first-team All-Pro in each of his first two seasons is under a lot of pressure? Sure.
In the case of Gardner, though, it’s worth it. Over the last two seasons, he’s completely taken over his side of the field to the point quarterbacks are even afraid to look his way. Despite that level of respect, there are those around the league who feel the Cincinnati product is overrated as a player.
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The easiest way for Gardner to shut down all the side noise about what kind of shutdown corner he is will be for him to dominate on a level that only Darrelle Revis has hit during his time with the Jets.
It’s possible, but 2024 is a golden opportunity for Gardner to prove just how good he really is.