Aaron Rodgers falls short as Vikings beat Jets in NFL’s latest London visit

The rain poured down. The crowd was unrelentingly hostile. But Aaron Rodgers was in his element – ​​with the ball in his hand and the chance to play the latest action hero role again.

He glanced at the scoreboard. His New York Jets team trailed 23-17 with just over three minutes remaining. That meant he needed a touchdown to win. And during his NFL career, he has made 21 fourth-quarter comebacks. This was his territory.

He moved steadily forward. Jets advanced down the field until they were within sight of the end zone. Maybe the old Rodgers had found another trick. But Old Rodgers, who turns 41 in December, couldn’t make it happen.

First, he overthrew his star wide receiver Garrett Wilson, causing him to swipe his hand in frustration. Then, with nine seconds left, his pass was intercepted by Stephon Gilmore of the Minnesota Vikings. And what threatened to be an unlikely comeback was over. The Vikings had clung on 23-17.

There were 61,139 people packed into the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, the most for any sporting match in Britain this weekend. And fans not only enjoyed the whole NFL fist-bumping, kiss-camming, XXL jersey-over-hoodie-wearing experience, they were also treated to a slow-burn thriller.

Things didn’t look that way in the first half as the Vikings raced to a 17-0 lead. They were already up 3-0 when Rodgers threw a pass straight to Vikings linebacker Andrew Van Ginkel, who ran the ball back for a 63-yard pick 6.

To make matters worse, Rodgers then threw another interception to Camryn Bynyum. As the Red Hot Chilli Peppers’ “Give It Away” played over the speakers, Rodgers shook his head and walked to the sideline. Shortly afterwards, Vikings fullback CJ Ham punched the ball in for another touchdown to extend the lead to 17-0.

At this point, social media was unanimous: Rodgers looked washed up. In reality, he seemed a far cry from the Rodgers of 2011 or even 2021, when he won the last of his four MVP awards. But how is it possible that he turns 41 later this year, has a torn Achilles tendon and missed training mid-week with a knee injury?

Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores is known as a master at disguising the blitz. And for most of the first half, it certainly seemed to confuse and confuse Rodgers.

But shortly before halftime, the Jets quarterback managed to get enough time to find Allen Lazard on a 14-yard pass to cut the score to 17-7 at halftime.

The deficit was further cut to 17-10 with a Greg Zuerlein field goal late in the third quarter, but Rodgers was left clutching his helmet grill in frustration after Lazard dropped a pass in the end zone.

The Vikings did very little on offense, but a 53-yard field goal by Reichard made the score 20-10 with just over 12 minutes remaining.

A one-yard touchdown pass to Garrett Wilson then cut the score to 20-17 and as Reichard increased the Vikings’ lead to 23-17, Rodgers took the field knowing the game was in his hand.

This time, however, he was unable to get it out. As a result, the Jets fall to 2-3 on the season, while the Vikings remain undefeated at 5-0.

That is unexpected, to say the least. Their quarterback, Sam Darnold, was viewed as a journeyman. They lost their fourth-round pick Khyree Jackson in a car accident over the summer. And the bookmakers had them finishing last in the NFC North. But now they already have half an eye on the play-offs.