Aaron Rodgers Shares Target Date to Return From Torn Achilles Tendon

By Brian Jones

Is Aaron Rodgers ready to make a big return to the New York Jets? During the Jets vs. Las Vegas Raiders game on Sunday night, NBC's Melissa Stark reported during the telecast that Rodgers is targeting to return from a torn Achilles tendon by mid-December. He suffered the injury during the season-opener against the Buffalo Bills in September.

"He said, 'I know it sounds insane, but you do a good surgery, you have a good patient, it makes this possible,'" Stark said on the telecast, per the Associated Press. Stark added that Rodgers "just wasn't feeling it" about throwing passes before the game as he has the last several weeks. Rodgers, who will turn 40 next month, said he's been working on a weight-limiting treadmill, jogging at 50 percent of his body weight. He's looking to increase it by 75 percent this week.

After the game, Jets head coach Robert Saleh was asked about Rodgers' comments. "I don't know," Saleh said, per the New York Post. "If the doctors clear him, we'll clear him." Last month, Saleh joined NFL Network's Good Morning Football on Tuesday and said he wouldn't close the door on Rodgers returning this season.

"I'm one of those guys searching, like, 'Is he supposed to do this?'" Saleh said, per NFL.com. "I've coached Richard Sherman, who was coming off his Achilles. I've got friends who have had Achilles injuries, and what he's doing, according to them, is absolutely ridiculous. For him to be walking already, I wouldn't put anything past him. He is a big believer in manifestation; you are who you think you are, and you become what you think about. He is willing himself to return faster than what you're supposed to be.

"I think he's fueled by doubt — I don't think, I know — he's fueled by doubt. The more you doubt him, the more fuel he has. He's on a mission. There's one thing I've learned about him, in my very short time with him, is that when he's got something on his mind and he wants to prove something, he's going to prove it."

Rodgers was traded to the Jets in April after spending 18 years with the Green Bay Packers. In his career, the star quarterback has been selected to the Pro Bowl 10 times, won the NFL MVP award four times and led the Packers to a Super Bowl title during the 2010 season.

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