Aaron Rodgers has made a career out of using his dogged intensity to push himself and his teammates to championship-level dominance, but it was a different type of push that caught the eye of NFL fans Thursday night.
With his New York Jets laying the foundation of what became a 24-3 blowout of the New England Patriots, Rodgers returned to the Jets sideline after New York’s second touchdown and appeared to two-hand shove coach Robert Saleh, who was attempting to give Rodgers a hug.
The exchange drew speculation about Rodgers’ reaction, but the coach and star quarterback were all smiles as they downplayed the interaction postgame.
“I didn’t know he was going for the hug, he likes to do the two-hand chest push as well,” Rodgers said. “He talks a lot about two-score leads, so I kind of just gave him a push and said, ‘two-score lead.’ That’s what happened.”
Saleh laughed talking about the moment as well, confirming postgame the interaction was only all about the Jets’ 14-0 lead at the time, not any frustrations.
This interaction between Aaron Rodgers and Robert Saleh … 👀
🎥 @NFLonPrime pic.twitter.com/7ODUpvCt5d
— The Athletic (@TheAthletic) September 20, 2024
The final box score showed Rodgers had little to be frustrated about, as the 40-year-old tallied 281 yards and two touchdowns in a turnover-free game.
“Part of the things we’ve been talking about is to just get the defense a two-score lead,” Saleh told reporters. “And it was a two-score lead, so I guess he just wanted to see something on defense, he was just reminding me we’ve got a two-score lead.”
In an otherwise dull “Thursday Night Football” game, the second-quarter shove emerged as the most talked-about narrative. But for Jets fans concerned about any Rodgers orneriness raining on their 2-1 start to the season, the quarterback and coach’s shared laughs postgame should preserve the optimism in East Rutherford, where Jets faithful were chanting Rodgers’ name by the third quarter of his vintage performance.
“It was a really special night. All those chants are really meaningful,” he said afterward.
Required reading
(Photo: Al Bello / Getty Images)
