Aaron Rodgers, Tom Brady, Derek Carr

If Brett Favre could leave a legendary legacy with the Packers and move to the Jets in a career-ending bet, why can’t Aaron Rodgers do the same?

Unlikely? Yes. Impossible? No.

If the rest of the Jets’ season looks anything like the first 10 games, those are the types of scenarios that will be in play.

Of course, this conjecture is premature: we are discussing the 2023 Jets quarterback while the 2022 Jets quarterback is in question. For the first time on Monday, head coach Robert Saleh wouldn’t commit to Zach Wilson starting under center Sunday against the Bears. Mike White and Joe Flacco are in play, and the supposed Jets quarterback of the future might not be their quarterback of the present.

Maybe Saleh is sticking with Wilson, who is harnessing the potential that made him the No. 2 pick in the 2021 draft and starting to win games for the Jets — or at least not lose them, like he and the offense did against the Patriots on Sunday. Maybe he’s made small steps in the last seven games of the season that lead the team to believe he can make the jump next season. Or maybe Wilson is retired as the starting quarterback and White adds a second chapter to his cult legend, his precise if not powerful arm working on offense.

But the Jets appear to be headed for a quarterback change in 2023, because that’s when teams change quarterbacks. When a team is ready to compete for a championship — and this Jets defense looks ready to compete for a championship — time flies much faster on an underperforming quarterback.

When the Broncos were strong enough to carry Tim Tebow into the divisional round of the playoffs after the 2011 season, they quickly ditched Tebow for Peyton Manning, who ultimately steered Denver to a Super Bowl. When the Jets got stronger at the start of the 2008 season, including bringing in offensive linemen Alan Faneca and Damien Woody and linebacker Calvin Pace, they could no longer hope that Chad Pennington or Kellen Clemens could be their quarterback. of franchise. So they went out and traded for Favre, the Packers’ former franchise quarterback. The Rams forgot to develop Jared Goff and added veteran Matthew Stafford; the Titans dropped Marcus Mariota because Ryan Tannehill could help right away.

These are the choices a team makes when their overall talent comes before their quarterback. The Jets’ previous two drafts have infused ability on the cheap. Sauce Gardner, Garrett Wilson and Elijah Moore are 22-year-old difference makers – and older than Breece Hall (21). Quinnen Williams (24) has one year left on his rookie contract, although the Jets could sign the monster defensive tackle to an extension. When those building blocks are in place, there’s no time to wait for a young quarterback to rise.

Is it fair to Zach Wilson, who is 23 and has played 20 career NFL games? It does not matter. There are teams that would capitalize on his talent, but those teams don’t have the talent that surrounds him on the Jets.

If the young and loaded Jets continue to have a quarterback problem for the rest of the season, it might be time to find their Favre. Let’s go through some of the options, which sound more ridiculous in theory than they actually are:

Roger: The Packers left Favre when the franchise icon was 38, had not recently retired, and had played 17 seasons in the NFL. Rodgers, 38, was unable to save a poor Packers team in his 15th season. We wonder if Rodgers will want to continue playing. Will the Packers end this era and look to see what they have in young Jordan Love rather than continuing to invest time and money in Rodgers, who is in his first season of a three-year extension of about $150 million?

Tom Brady: Crazier things have happened, haven’t they? The 45-year-old will be a free agent after the season. He loves winning and he would love to beat Bill Belichick. The Jets, forever a hated rival to Brady, could offer him the opportunity for both. Brady, leading the NFL in completions (282) and attempts (427) on a mediocre 5-5 Bucs team, would be tabloid and sports radio gold.

Jimmy Garoppolo: The former Brady protege will never be a star. The 49ers, who committed to Trey Lance before the young QB was lost for the year, know they can’t ask Jimmy G to win games on his own. But the future free agent has proven that he can essentially be an average quarterback who can guide a powerful team (with a defense led by Saleh) to the Super Bowl, which is precisely what the Jets would ask for.

Derek Carr: The Raiders are 3-7 and heading for a first draft pick with whom they could target a quarterback to rebuild. In nine seasons, Carr has alternated seemed like an average quarterback or borderline top-10 QB — each of which the Jets would take. Carr owes $32.9 million for 2023 unless the Raiders cut it shortly after the Super Bowl. It would be surprising if Carr returned to Las Vegas.

The most optimistic Jets fans can talk to each other about Lamar Jackson, although it seems unlikely that the Ravens will let him go as a free agent. The most pessimistic can probe Gardner Minshew, Taylor Heinicke and perhaps even the reborn Geno Smith.

Maybe Wilson is about to grow up, and those options become laughable in a week. But everything we’ve seen so far indicates the Jets need a proven quarterback.

Today’s last page

Read more:

🏀 Jalen Brunson’s season-high 34 points lead Knicks over Thunder

⚾ Aaron Judge spotted in San Francisco with Giants reunion planned

Pretty good for Team USA so far

It was not a disastrous start for the American men at the World Cup. But given how the game started, the way the game ended was certainly underwhelming.

The United States men’s national team came away with a point in their first World Cup game since 2014, but it’s as if the United States team wasted two points. A solid first half in which the Americans took the lead gave way to a wayward second half in which the advantage was lost in a 1-1 draw with the Country of Wales during the opening game of the two teams in Qatar.

For 81 minutes, it looked like it would be a dream start for not just Team USA, but Team Tri-State as well. Tim Weah – born in Brooklyn, raised in Queens – got past the Welsh defense on a breakaway and latched onto a nice feed from Christian Pulisic. Wales goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey rushed to cut the angle but Weah passed him for the goal in the 36th minute in a first half with plenty of chances for the Americans.

The tide started to turn in the second half, but goaltender Matt Turner — of Park Ridge, NJ, and a Fairfield graduate — potentially saved the game in the 64th minute. Wales’ threat culminated with a running header from Ben Davies. Turner, reacting quickly, jumped up and scooped up just enough of the ball with his right hand to flip it over the crossbar.

However, Turner couldn’t keep the Americans ahead for long. The equalizer came in the 82nd minute, after Walker Zimmerman beat Gareth Bale in the box. Bale took the kick and simply overpowered Turner, who guessed right but still couldn’t deflect the shot.

For the American team (ranked 16th in the FIFA world rankings), a draw with Wales (ranked 19th) is acceptable. The result is beautiful, even if the way it was achieved is hard to swallow.

The next stop for the United States will be England on Friday. The Americans are right and hope that the two they miss don’t burn them.

Is three the magic number for Kyrie?

There are all kinds of questions surrounding Kyrie Irving, who this weekend answered many questions about his sharing a link on social media to a film that trumpeted anti-Semitic lies, including questioning the Holocaust.

And then there are the basketball questions, which Irving seemed eager to answer. The next could be: is this your last chance here?

For the third time in as many seasons, the Nets welcomed Irving after an extended absence for curious reasons. There were those missed seven games in January 2021, when he cited personal reasons for staying away from the team. He didn’t appear in a game last season until January and didn’t play at Barclays Center until late March due to his refusal to get a COVID-19 shot. This time he was suspended for eight games after sharing the film and initially refused to say he had no anti-Semitic beliefs.

Nets fans cheered him on his return Sunday, a solid win over the Grizzlies. The guess here is that there won’t be a fourth Irving comeback after a long absence.

Every Nets game will count before the Feb. 9 trade deadline. An 8-9 Nets team will have to convince their front office and owner that they can seriously compete for a title, which they haven’t had a lackluster start to the season.

Ben Simmons stepping up recently has been encouraging. Irving being back on the floor will help. Kevin Durant was Kevin Durant.

The so-called super-team is finally here, in action again tonight in Philadelphia. How long will it stay here?