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Aaron Rodgers has officially been activated on the Jets roster, even though he doesn’t plan on playing.
Last week, Rodgers told Pat McAfee that he didn’t plan on playing this season while he recovers from his Achilles injury because he’s just not ready.
“I do feel like in the next three to four weeks, it would have been very possible to get to 100 percent, but obviously not there. So the conversation was a way from 100 percent medical clearance to willingness to play, and that’s never been a problem for me.”
On Wednesday, Jets head coach Robert Saleh revealed that Rodgers would be on the team’s roster for the remainder of the season and explained his decision while speaking to the media.
“As I said, it’s all part of his rehab,” Saleh said. “Just having him out on the football field is a plus for everybody. It’s a plus for him, it’s a plus for his teammates, so we’re going to keep him on the 53.”
Unfortunately, Jets practice squad player Kalon Barnes lost his job and was cut to make room for Rodgers.
On Wednesday, the Jets added Rodgers to the 53-man roster, so that he could keep practicing for the balance of the season. He’s not expected to play in any games.
The move resulted in the Jets cutting fullback Nick Bawden. He cleared waivers and signed with the practice squad. He’s expected to be elevated to the active roster for the final three games of the year, allowing him to make the money he would have lost by getting the short straw.
But there’s always a short straw. With Bawden joining the practice squad, someone had to go. That someone was defensive back Kalon Barnes.
Without Rodgers wedging his way back onto the 53-man roster, however, Bawden likely would have finished out the year on the active roster — and Barnes likely would have finished out the year on the practice squad. In the end, Barnes is the only one who loses money because Rodgers wanted to be on the roster, even if he’s not going to be playing.