Joe Namath Is Willing To Unretire His #12 To Get Aaron Rodgers On The Jets

If Aaron Rodgers ends up with the New York Jets, he'll be able to wear his No. 12 jersey.

That's according to the Hall of Famer who has that number retired. Also known as, the most famous Jet of all time - Joe Namath.

In an interview earlier this week on Tiki and Tierney, Namath was talking about the Jets potentially looking around the league for a new starting quarterback, after what was a rough season for Zach Wilson.

He began talking about how much he likes Aaron Rodgers and that "it'd be great" if the Jets would be able to bring him to New York.

But there's one issue. Rodgers has worn #12 his whole life - the very same number Broadway Joe had retired after his Jets career.

However, Namath showed Rodgers the ultimate sign of respect and support - by saying he'd be willing to unretire that number so the future Hall of Famer, Rodgers, would still be able to wear it.

HALL OF FAMER RESPECTS FUTURE HALL OF FAMER

“I hope it can come true but it’s farfetched. I know Mr. Johnson’s trying to get a quarterback. If there’s a way he can get Rodgers, I’m a big Rodgers fan, and I noticed that he wears number 12 of course. Man, if we get him, is he still going to wearing number 12? Because that number was retired years ago,” Namath explained.

Namath then continued showing his support for Rodgers and announced that he would be willing to let him wear 12 if he found his way to MetLife Stadium.

"I’d sure love Rodgers if he’s there. Yeah, I want him to wear his number. We established ourselves and we’ve got a real respect for our numbers, and Aaron Rodgers, God almighty, yeah! It’d be great to have him in New York," Joe said.

Boom. I mean first off, to have Joe Namath's backing is awesome.

And the fact that he would be willing to unretire his number? Athletes are absolutely crazy about things like that. From miniscule things like where their locker is located to always being paranoid that someone is going to come along and surpass them and they will be forgotten about. And jersey numbers? Don't get me started on the superstitions that some athletes have with them.

But not Namath. The smooth and once-wild man of New York City knows that his legacy goes beyond just having his jersey number retired. His "sure why the hell not?" attitude about passing on the number to Rodgers shows why Namath is still the King of New York.

Joe Namath wants to give Aaron Rodgers his No. 12 jersey. (Photo by Michael Owens/Getty Images)

RODGERS FUTURE TEAM?

In what has become almost an eye-rolling reaction by fans nearly every offseason now, it's unclear what Aaron Rodgers future plans are.

After a public cat and mouse game last season with Green Bay, he elected to return to the team so long as they built the team around him and acquired top-notch talent. That didn't happen. The Packers ended the season with a 8-9 record and missed out on the playoffs for the first time since 2018.

There's already reports and rumors about him wanting to leave Green Bay. But the question is - where would he go, and perhaps more importantly - who can actually afford him? Rodgers is set to make $59 million next year and $49 million the year after that. Very few teams can actually take that kind of salary cap hit, although it is possible Rodgers could restructure his deal if he wanted to get out of Green Bay that badly.

If Rodgers did opt out to leave and end up with the Jets, it would be almost fate.

That's because in a total "are we living in a simulation," deja-vu scenario, the last Packers great quarterback also ended up with the Jets. That was Brett Favre, who the Jets traded for in 2008, which led the way to the Packers No. 12 to take the reigns.