Wide receiver Garrett Wilson #5 of the New York Jets (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)
New York Jets wide receiver Garrett Wilson is feeling good about his chemistry with Aaron Rodgers.
Although this is Year 2 for the star duo, it really feels like Year 1 considering Rodgers suffered a season-ending injury on the first drive of the first game in his first season with the Jets. In other words, this will be the first season that Wilson and Rodgers really play together.
While neither Wilson or Rodgers suited up this preseason, they gained chemistry throughout training camp and joint practice sessions against three different teams - the Washington Commanders, New York Giants and Carolina Panthers.
"Having him back for training camp this year was awesome," says Wilson of Rodgers' return in an interview with RG on behalf of his partnership with Dr Teal's. "I know we had a lot of energy - the whole team - especially having him back out there. We truly got better every day."
Wilson explained how the joint practice sessions against three different NFC teams helped the chemistry between both him and Rodgers and how they're ready to show it in Week 1 against the San Francisco 49ers.
The Jets will open the season against the defending NFC champs, the San Francisco 49ers, in Week 1 on Monday Night Football. It's a great litmus test that Wilson calls a "measuring stick" game as the Jets look to finally show that they're contenders. During Wilson's first two seasons in New York, the Jets have finished with 7-10 records in each season, while the Niners have been to the Super Bowl twice in the past five seasons.
While Wilson won't guarantee that this is the year that the Jets break through, there's little doubt that having Rodgers in the fold will make a tremendous difference. Instead of Zach Wlson lining up behind center, the four-time MVP Rodgers will be under center alongside a defensive unit that ranked No. 4 just two seasons prior.
Despite the fact that Rodgers is coming off of the Achilles injury, Wilson says he looks as good as he always has.
"Oh yeah, man," Wilson says when asked if Rodgers looks good coming off of the injury. "He looks like the Aaron I grew up watching, the Hall-of-Famer that we all know."
Rodgers is nearly 17 years older than Wilson and entered the league nearly two decades prior to his go-to receiver. With the two star players being of different generations, Wilson has learned a lot from Rodgers since his arrival a year prior.
"Just the way he goes about his prep and his recovery throughout the week, when you play until the age of 40 and 20 years in the league, it doesn't happen by accident," says Wilson of what he's learned from Rodgers. "It doesn't happen because you're not being intentional."
Wilson says the biggest thing he's learned from the 40-year-old Rodgers is the importance of "recovery." That will serve Wilson well as he looks to enjoy a long career himself in the NFL.
"The main takeaways that I've had from him are just how important your recovery is, how important your prep is, knowing what your opponent is going to do," says Wilson of Rodgers. "He's such a cerebral guy, anytime we get to have conversations, honestly, they're all super enlightening to me. It's hard to pinpoint just one, but he's special and I'm trying to take it all in and just be a sponge every time I'm around him, even though it's been going on two years,
"it's still fresh. Everything that he says, I take something away from that. I'm blessed to be able to play with someone like this, especially towards the tail end of their career where they have a lot to give intel-wise."
Wilson and the Jets will pay a visit to the Bay Area to take on the Niners in Week 1 on Monday night.
DJ Siddiqi
