Aaron Rodgers says the ticket to the Jets playing less tight is accepting the worst-case scenario.
The Jets’ season is spiraling with a 2-5 record, and Rodgers senses that the pressure to turn things around is sucking some of the fun out of his team.
“I think you have to get yourself to a point — whether you are 2-5 or 5-2 or wherever you are in between –— ‘What’s the worst that can happen?’ and take your mind to that spot and deal with it,” Rodgers said on “The Pat McAfee Show” on Tuesday. “And, ‘What’s the best that can happen?’ and take your mind to that spot and deal with it. But deal with it and then move on and play free.
“The worst that can happen (is) we don’t turn this around, things go south and a lot of us are in a different stratosphere. Deal with that. OK, cool. Are you going to be OK after that? Yeah. What’s the best that can happen? We embrace the energy that’s shifted in two weeks, we play free, we do the little things … and we go on a run and do something magical.”
Rodgers repeatedly said “it starts with me” and he tries to bring a different energy to the Jets, following last week’s trade for his buddy Davante Adams to bolster the offense and Monday’s arrival of pass-rusher Haason Reddick (who ended his season-long holdout) to bolster the defense.
“Personally, and as a team, we’re playing with too much anger, not enough enjoyment,” Rodgers said. “It’s fun when you win, of course. But there are ways of taking some of the pressure off. And it’s got to start with me this week. We’ve got to respond to adversity a little bit better.”
The Jets allowed 31 unanswered points to the Steelers in Sunday’s 37-15 loss and aim to rebound in Week 8 on the road against the Patriots.