Jets HC Robert Saleh sends message to doubters after Aaron Rodgers injury

New York Jets head coach Robert Saleh sent a direct message to doubters less than 24 hours after he lost starting quarterback Aaron Rodgers to a season-ending torn Achilles. 

"I don’t know why people are trying to put an obituary onto our team name," Saleh said while speaking with reporters on Tuesday, per Alex Smith of SNY. "Aaron is an unbelievable piece to this whole thing and we love him, but I think there’s 52 other guys in the locker room plus the 16 practice squad guys that believe that we can do a hell of a lot of good things here. We’ve got a championship-caliber defense, we’ve got great skill guys on the offensive side of the ball, our O-line is going to gel and get better, but we’re excited about our group." 

The Jets began Monday as an advertised Super Bowl contender with Rodgers, a four-time NFL Most Valuable Player, atop the depth chart, and there's currently no adequate replacement available for the future Hall of Famer considering it's highly unlikely Tom Brady would end his retirement to play for any team, let alone a rival of the New England Patriots. 

With that said, the 2022 Jets were 7-5 before quarterback Mike White suffered fractures to his ribs while filling in for the then-benched Zach Wilson. Saleh's hope as of Tuesday is that Wilson can at least match White's best play from last fall beginning with this coming Sunday's game at the 1-0 Dallas Cowboys. 

Wilson completed 14 of 21 pass attempts for 140 yards with a touchdown and an interception in Monday's 22-16 overtime win over the Buffalo Bills and is on track to start for the Jets until further notice. 

"We are going to look through some things, but I do want to make it very clear: Zach’s our quarterback," Saleh said about the club's options at the position. "We’ve got a lot of faith in Zach. We’re really excited about his opportunity, but we’re rolling with Zach and excited for him, and like I said, this opportunity that he’s going to get." 

The Jets defense forced four turnovers on Monday and may have to produce repeat performances to keep the club a legitimate championship contender with Wilson in the lineup. 

As of late Tuesday afternoon, OddsChecker listed the Jets as ninth among the betting favorites at +3100 odds to represent the AFC in Super Bowl LVIII.