Jets’ Robert Saleh: ‘Wouldn’t hold my breath’ on an Aaron Rodgers return in Week 15

The clock for Aaron Rodgers‘ return is winding down, but it doesn’t seem like he’ll be back on the field for the Jets when they take on the Dolphins next week.

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Jets coach Robert Saleh cooled off any expectations that the star quarterback would return from his Achilles tear in Week 15 following their win over the Texans on Sunday.

“He’s in rehab, so I don’t really have an answer for you on that one,” Saleh told reporters when asked if he thinks Rodgers could return to the playing field next week. “But, like I said before, I wouldn’t hold my breath.”

Rodgers returned to practice on Nov. 29, opening the Jets’ 21-day window to activate him off injured reserve. As Saleh implied that Rodgers won’t play next week, the Jets would only have a few days following their game against the Dolphins to decide if they want to activate him. If they opt not to activate Rodgers by Dec. 20, his season will officially be over.

Not long after Rodgers tore his Achilles on his fourth play with the Jets in Week 1, the quarterback expressed a desire to return this season. Rodgers has held onto that wish since he returned to practice, telling reporters on Dec. 2 that he still hoped to play this season.

“A lot of people just get surgery and it’s like the year is over,” Rodgers said on his 40th birthday. “Like [Ravens RB] J.K. Dobbins who I was rehabbing with out there, like J.K. is thinking about next year. But I’m old. I don’t feel like I have the luxury to think about next year. I want to come back this year and play.”

But Rodgers has also indicated that the Jets’ playoff hopes could play a factor in whether he plays again this season.

“I think it’s always been first, am I healthy?” Rodgers said of the benchmarks he’d like to clear before returning to play on “The Pat McAfee Show” a day prior to returning to practice. “Then, are we in it? Are we playing good enough to make a run? Can I step in and protect myself and play the level that I feel like I’m capable of playing? Can I protect myself? Can I move around the way I want to move around?”

The Jets’ playoff hopes have dwindled in recent weeks as they lost five games in a row. But the Jets got back into the win column on Sunday, defeating the Texans, 30-6, to pick up their first win since October. Still, at 5-8, New York’s chances at making the postseason seem far-fetched. The Jets are two wins back from a playoff spot in the AFC, but six teams sit between them and the No. 7 seed.

Zach Wilson had his best performance of the season in his first game back as the Jets’ starting quarterback on Sunday. He completed 27 of 36 passes for 301 yards, two touchdowns and zero interceptions with a 117.9 passer rating. The Jets started Tim Boyle at quarterback in the two games prior to benching Wilson, who played quarterback in Rodgers’ absence after he went down.

The Jets host the Commanders in Week 16 before closing the season off with road matchups against the Browns and Patriots.