The long wait for Aaron Rodgers to return to the Jets lineup is almost over.

Rodgers will start quarterback for the Jets when they face the 49ers in Santa Clara on Monday night, marking his return to game action after tearing his Achilles tendon four snaps into the 2023 season. Rodgers has had to rehab that injury and has been questioned about his ability to return to playing at a high level, leading to a question at a press conference Thursday about whether he was holding a grudge ahead of the opening game.

“Why not? I’ve always played with something, my shoulder“, Rodgers said of SNY. “You have to manufacture things from time to time. It’s kind of a matter of proving it – who would I have to prove it to? Only myself at this point. I’m very proud of my performance, so I expect great things when I step on the field. Because I’ve done it before and that’s kind of the standard I hold myself to.”

While Rodgers is not afraid to build things up as motivation, the quarterback also emphasized the need to “prepare to really come down from the wave” of emotions that come up over the course of a football season. That may be his approach to the big picture, but the fact that he was able to take snap No. 5 against the 49ers could still be the impetus for a little jolt.