Robert Saleh Explains Aaron Rodgers Joint Practice Absence

The rain opened up early in Florham Park - the home of the New York Jets facility that hosted the Washington Commanders Thursday morning for joint practices.

It didn't matter what players, media members, or fans did, it was a wet surface kind of day that only got worse as practice wore on.

In the case of head coach Robert Saleh, there was just no reason to throw out his 40-year-old quarterback to the practice wolves in this kind of weather.

Aaron Rodgers' late absence from joint practices for the Jets came late in the process for New York according to Saleh. Despite pushback from the quarterback, the coach had one word to describe the end result.

"Unnecessary."

"It was just unnecessary, heightened environment, unfamiliar foes in terms of taking care of one another," Saleh explained. "I just didn't want to expose him to it, if it was a game, if it was a practice, if it was clean outside, he would've practiced today, call it overprotection, but it was just the decision I made."

Related: Mike Williams Excited to Be Practicing With Jets

Rodgers won't make an appearance in Saturday's preseason contest between the two teams, but it's clear that the Jets are focused more on making sure their star quarterback is healthy for the 2024 season.

Throwing him out in bad conditions where anything disastrous could happen would have been foolish in their mind.

After a day in the rain, it's hard to argue that point, too.