NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Aaron Rodgers is now a man of motion.
The Jets quarterback had criticized the use of pre-snap motion when he was in Green Bay, and it has been widely perceived since then that he is opposed to it.
But the Jets used motion on 49 percent of their snaps last week against the 49ers, a sign that they are willing to put receivers on the move more before and at the snap.
Rodgers said this week that his views on motion have changed as teams like the 49ers and Dolphins have made it extremely popular now.
“It’s all the rage,” Rodgers said. “I think there was a time where for me, there was a love affair with what Peyton [Manning] was doing for so long, where they just lined up in two-by-two or three-by-one and everything’s at the line of scrimmage, so I think there’s value in just being able to look at it, and then like we’ve done third down a few times and being able to get to the right play, and as we’ve seen, there’s a lot of value in the pre-snap motion stuff because it creates a lot of consternation for the defense, and it tests their gap-control stuff. It tests their rules.”
Rodgers said his comments against motion were a long time ago, and he has grown since then and now sees the value of motion as the game has changed.
“It can move multiple guys in the same play — whether it’s the nickel, or backers, or safeties — so it gives them a lot to think about, and I think it’s an important part of the offense, but that’s because the league has changed,” Rodgers said. “When Peyton was going when I was a younger player, the league was different. You could keep base on the field. You could sit there and look at it and [figure] out what was coming.
“Now, my consternation with all the motion was protection because of the West Coast quarterback, I was raised to start with protection, but as we’ve seen now with all these motions, teams become less aggressive to bring pressure because you can get gashed, whether it’s in the run game or the pass game by boarding zone. So long answer, but I do like the motion. I did say that at one point. And I appreciate you giving me the room to grow and to adjust to that.”
The Jets elevated DL Jalyn Holmes from the practice squad for Sunday’s game against the Titans.
