LeBron James and Patrick Mahomes in full agreement over Aaron Rodgers' Hail Mary
By Joseph McBride,
8 hours ago
Aaron Rodgers rolled back the years with a stunning 52-yard Hail Mary to Allen Lazard and forced instant reactions from Patrick Mahomes and LeBron James on social media.
It looked like the New York Jets would trail the Buffalo Bills by 10 points at the half on "Monday Night Football" but Rodgers , the four-time NFL MVP, had other ideas. Lazard was able to out-jump Bills defensive pairing Taylor Repp and Taron Johnson to haul in the ball and make one of the touchdown grabs of the season.
Initially, Jets fans were confused when interim head coach Jeff Ulbrich started calling timeouts when the Bills were in the red zone toward the end of the half. Bills quarterback Josh Allen took advantage and found tight end Dawson Knox free in the corner of the end zone, and the decision by the Jets appeared to be a mistake.
But Ulbrich clearly trusted that Rodgers could respond with a touchdown, especially as the Jets offense looked the best it has all season after Todd Downing was named play-caller. Offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett was stripped of the responsibility ahead of Monday night.
Of course, it had to be Lazard on the receiving end, as the former Green Bay Packers teammates have revived their partnership at the Jets this season. Lazard scored his fifth touchdown of the year after catching the 52-yard pass, in just six games.
Lazard and Rodgers spent five seasons together in Green Bay, and it looked like that partnership would end when the Packers sent their future Hall of Famer to the Jets. Instead, the Jets signed Lazard to a four-year, $44 million contract following the Rodgers trade.
Things didn't go to plan for either of them last season, as Rodgers' year lasted just five minutes. The injury to Rodgers just five minutes into Week 1 of the 2023 season impacted the remainder of the year, and Lazard scored just one touchdown in 14 games.
With Rodgers back healthy this season, Lazard has been a different threat, but it all started in training camp. "I think he's had a really nice camp. I'm really proud of him," Rodgers said during training camp. "I think his leadership, as much as anything, has been great.
"I think he's conducted himself with a lot of humility, which is always some of the pie that you eat after a season you'd like to have gone differently. I'm really proud of the way he's responded. He's had a fantastic camp."
Want to watch more live sports? Peacock has your favorite sports, shows, and more all in one place. Peacock offers plans starting at $7.99 so you can stream live sports like NFL, Premier League, and Big Ten Football.
Get updates delivered to you daily. Free and customizable.
It’s essential to note our commitment to transparency:
Our Terms of Use acknowledge that our services may not always be error-free, and our Community Standards emphasize our discretion in enforcing policies. As a platform hosting over 100,000 pieces of content published daily, we cannot pre-vet content, but we strive to foster a dynamic environment for free expression and robust discourse through safety guardrails of human and AI moderation.