NY Jets news: Quincy Williams discusses the moment Aaron Rodgers went down with season-ending injury

The NY Jets entered the 2023 NFL season with high expectations after the offseason addition of quarterback Aaron Rodgers. Unfortunately for the Jets, Rodgers went down with a season-ending Achilles injury four plays into the first game.

The Jets were then forced to adapt on the fly, but they struggled throughout the season without their star quarterback and finished with a 7-10 record. While speaking with media members in Las Vegas ahead of Super Bowl LVIII, Jets linebacker Quincy Williams discussed what it was like to ride the Rodgers rollercoaster at the start of the season.

"Leading up to it we had 'Hard Knocks,' the whole offseason was lit, training camp was lit," Williams said. "Now it's gameday, we're prime time. ... Going into the game, he runs out the tunnel, it's amazing. The crowd is going crazy. Then four plays in we see him on the ground.

"He got back up, ran another play, then he was actually out," Williams added. "So it was one of those things where we didn't know what was going on."

Once the Jets realized the severity of the injury, Williams admitted that morale dropped initially. However, he said Rodgers encouraged the team to stay focused and committed.

"When we found out what actually happened, it was down spirits at first, but then it was one of those things like, hey, nothing changes just because that happened," Williams said. "He was the one who said it. He was like, 'The standard is still the standard.' So, that was our biggest thing."

The NY Jets will look to build on a disappointing 2023 season

Despite the fact that they missed out on the playoffs for the 13th consecutive season in 2023, there were still some positives that they can build off of moving forward. They still managed to win seven games despite the fact that they lost their starting quarterback in Week 1.

Plus, they allowed the third-fewest yards per game in the entire NFL over the course of the season with 292.3. Only the Cleveland Browns (270.2) and Kansas City Chiefs (289.2) allowed fewer yards per game.

With a stingy defense, some offensive upgrades, and Rodgers back in the mix, the Jets could potentially put themselves in position to end their playoff drought next season.