Aaron Rodgers never uttered the word “relaxed” like he once did when he was leading another team facing adversity.
But he delivered a similar message to his teammates on Monday night in the aftermath of the Jets' 32-19 season-opening loss to the 49ers.
Before everyone had showered, changed and boarded the team bus, Rodgers stood before his teammates in the visitors' locker room at Levi's Stadium and offered words of encouragement following a painful loss that came after a summer of high hopes and expectations.
“He spoke to all of us in the locker room after the game, and as someone who's had a lot of experience in this league and been through a lot, it felt good to hear him speak to us honestly and sincerely and know we're going to be OK,” tight end Tyler Conklin told The Post on Wednesday.
Wednesday marked exactly one year since Rodgers ruptured his left Achilles tendon in the '23 season opener, his first game in a Jets uniform.
This month marks the 10th anniversary of Rodgers' famous “RELA-X” public message to Green Bay fans upset after the team's 1-2 start to the 2014 season.
“Five words to all you Packers fans: Relax,” Rodgers said on his radio show at the time. “Relax. We're going to be OK.”
Therein lies the message he delivered to his dejected teammates in the locker room after Monday night's demoralizing loss.
“I think you have to stay relaxed all the time,” Rodgers said Wednesday when asked if his “relax” message from 10 years ago applies to the Jets today. “It's a long season. I think some people think it's like searching for water in the prairie or the desert, but it's more like a nice slow bolero, swaying to the music and reacting to what's coming at you and through you and trying not to get too high or too low.”
“The league is a lot different than it was a few years ago when I said ‘relaxed,’ there’s a lot more coverage. [and] “There's a lot more opportunity to overreact. I get that. We want to win, the fans want to win, the organization wants to win, but the process has to be the same. We have to stick to the process and the preparation and the formula and trust that it's good enough. Like a sleek Bolero.”
For the uninitiated, the bolero is a rhythmic Spanish dance.
Rodgers' message was well received by his teammates and helped calm players who were on the verge of panic after the opening-day loss.
“Aaron definitely has a grandfatherly or shaman-like aura about him, especially when he's speaking to the masses. That comes from his success and his almost 20-year career in the league,” receiver Allen Lazard, who played with Rodgers in Green Bay, told The Post. “It's not that I don't believe him when someone else speaks, but when he speaks, there's a little more confidence. There's a sense of comfort and trust in what he's saying.”
Conklin recalled Rogers' “relax” comment, joking that “people don't relax in New York,” but added that the message was “a very valid point and when it comes from someone like him, it carries even more validity because of what he's seen and what he's been through.”
The Jets were 1-0 last season with a walk-off overtime win against the Bills after Rodgers was knocked out with an Achilles injury.
Well, you know what happened after that.
A year later, the Jets feel much better when they're 0-1 with Rodgers healthy than they did when they were 1-0 with him sitting out the season.
“Last year, there were so many unknowns after the season opener: 'What's going on? What's going to happen this season?'” Conklin said. “Right now, we don't have that. We know we have a good team, we have good players and we have some things we need to fix. But we definitely feel comfortable with Aaron leading this team. With him behind us, we always have a chance.”
Incidentally, after Rodgers' “relax” message, the 2014 Packers won 11 of their final 13 games to win the NFC North title and advance to the divisional playoff round.
This isn't to say the 2024 Jets are a certainty to follow Rodgers' latest message of encouragement and go down the same path.
But even a playoff berth would at least whet the appetite of their hungry fan base. That would be a great start, and they should win against the Titans on Sunday in Nashville, Tennessee, and then again at home against the Patriots next Thursday night.
