Aaron Rodgers shares personal message with Bryce Young
This week, the New York Jets and Carolina Panthers held joint practices. That put veteran star Aaron Rodgers on the field with the first overall pick, Bryce Young. Naturally, Rodgers was able to pass on some wisdom to the young quarterback.
Rodgers, who knows a thing or two about dealing with high expectations while leading a team, shared the message he gave to Young.
“Be gentle with yourself. It’s a long journey,” Aaron Rodgers said he told Bryce Young. “It feels like every little snap and practice is the end of the world if it doesn’t go right. It’s just not true. It’s a long, long journey. It’s about holding onto your confidence and enjoying the ride. Enjoying the little things every day. But I think he’s got a great head on his shoulders, and he’ll be just fine.”
It’s important perspective for a young quarterback to have. It also makes sense that Aaron Rodgers, who started his career waiting behind Brett Favre to have as an older player.
For Young’s part, he knows to listen when veterans like Rodgers share advice. He said, “When you talk about someone like Aaron Rodgers who’s had so much success for so long, any advice that he gives I’m definitely going to be receptive to and listen to.”
Interestingly, Favre and Rodgers had a famously tense relationship because he was drafted to ultimately replace the older quarterback. Rodgers has, seemingly, been determined to be a better mentor to the young quarterbacks around him. That extends to Jordan Love in Green Bay, Zach Wilson in New York, and now rookies on other teams entirely.
Ahead of training camp this season Love shared that Rodgers told him, “’Be yourself, have fun, enjoy it.’ Obviously it’s my time now (and) he said, ‘Be yourself. That’s all you can do.’ That’s kind of been the message from everybody, just be yourself don’t try to be anybody else. Don’t try to be Aaron, anybody else.”
When he decides to hang his cleats up, Aaron Rodgers will be a first-ballot Hall of Fame quarterback. Until then, it looks like he’s going to keep mentoring young quarterbacks.
“Obviously you could just tell the command, how in control he is, how confident he is in all that he does, and just the efficiency and the decision-making, making quick decisions,” Young said. “Knows where to go with the ball and definitely has a great presence about him in the pocket, so again, I have the utmost respect for him.”
On Saturday, Young and Rodgers will meet for a preseason game. It’s the opener for Young, who will start for Carolina.
Aaron Rodgers loves living in New York
This is the first season that Aaron Rodgers has played outside of Green Bay. So far, so good for Rodgers, though, as he loves to live in New York.
“I love it. I’m having a blast. I grew up in a small town, there are a lot of small towns in Northern California. I’ve dreamed since I was a kid of being in a big city. I moved to LA and San Diego, and so I’ve been in some of those on the West Coast,” Rodgers said.
“But I’m loving the East Coast. I’m really loving the city, I’m loving (New) Jersey where I’m at. Met a lot of great people being out and about done a lot of incredible things from you know, a hockey game and (Madison Square Garden), a couple of Knicks games. a Taylor Swift concert, an Ed Sheeran concert. We’ve been to see Wicked and now Back to the Future.”
The post Aaron Rodgers shares personal message with Bryce Young appeared first on On3.
