Aaron Rodgers says there are "no excuses" for the New York Jets after mistakes saw them fall to a 32-19 loss to the San Francisco 49ers in their NFL opener.
Rodgers, making his first appearance since rupturing his Achilles tendon in the Jets' first game of 2023, struggled for much of his return.
He was held to just 167 yards on 13-of-21 passes and had an interception that led to one of five field goals for San Francisco, though he did throw one touchdown pass to Allen Lazard in the third quarter.
The 40-year-old was less than impressed with his first start in 20 months and is already looking for improvements.
"That's an excuse [none of the starters playing in pre-season]. I'm not going to use that," Rodgers said. "I don't think we should. We expect greatness when we step on the field.
"This is a tough opener for us, travel-wise and schedule-wise, but no excuses. We have to play better, and I have to play better, and we'll bounce back."
Rodgers became just the 22nd quarterback in the Super Bowl era (since 1966) to play after his 40th birthday, and despite the disappointing result, he was pleased to be back out on the field.
"It felt great," he added. "A lot of gratitude just to be back in pads. So many people helped me get to this spot.
"I'm really thankful for my surgeon, my loved ones, my friends, the staff and the training staff to help me get back. Obviously, I wanted to take a shot and feel the physicality of it.
"Once I threw a couple of balls and took a shot, it felt good."
The 49ers played without star running back Christian McCaffrey, who was ruled out shortly before kick-off due to a calf and Achilles injury.
Jordan Mason stepped up in his absence, playing a starring role for the Super Bowl runners-up as he finished with a career-high 28 carries for 147 yards and a touchdown.
"I thought he runs like he always does," coach Kyle Shanahan said.
"When you get him the ball, he breaks tackles, usually gets more than we block for. When we had the good lanes, he always hit them, and we got a bunch."
Cleveland Browns trade wide receiver Cooper to Buffalo Bills
The Buffalo Bills have given their offence a boost, while the Cleveland Browns may be signalling they're giving up on the season.
The Bills acquired wide receiver Amari Cooper from the Browns on Tuesday in exchange for a 2025 third-round draft pick and a 2026 seventh-rounder.
As part of the trade, Buffalo will also receive a 2025 sixth-round pick.
Cooper was drafted fourth overall by the then-Oakland Raiders in 2015, and in 10 seasons since his rookie year, he ranks eighth in receptions (691), seventh in receiving yards (9,736) and seventh in touchdown catches (62).
He only had 24 receptions for 250 yards and two touchdowns in six games in 2024, but part of his lack of production has to do with the poor play of quarterback Deshaun Watson.
In 2023, he had 72 catches for 1,250 yards with five TDs to earn a fifth Pro Bowl selection.
He now joins a Buffalo team that is led by star quarterback Josh Allen, but is without a clear-cut No. 1 receiver following the off-season departure of Stefon Diggs and Gabe Davis.
Tight end Dalton Kincaid leads the Bills with 21 receptions for 217 yards, while receiver Khali Shakir has 20 catches for 249 yards.
In Buffalo's 23-20 win over the New York Jets on Monday night, the Bills did not have a receiver catch more than three passes.
Despite being without a star receiver, the Bills are atop the AFC East with a 4-2 record.
The Browns, meanwhile, dropped to 1-5 with another inept offensive showing in Sunday's 20-16 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles.
Cooper will have his first opportunity to be on the field with his new team this Sunday against the Tennessee Titans.
New York Jets acquire wide receiver Adams from Las Vegas Raiders
Davante Adams will be reunited with Aaron Rodgers.
The Las Vegas Raiders traded Adams to the New York Jets on Tuesday for a conditional third-round draft pick that can become a second-rounder depending upon his production from the remainder of the 2024 NFL season.
The trade, which was being finalised less than 24 hours after the Jets suffered a tough 23-20 home loss to the Buffalo Bills on Monday night, makes Adams and Rodgers team-mates again.
Adams and Rodgers played together for eight seasons with the Green Bay Packers from 2014-21, with Adams catching 615 passes from Rodgers for 7,529 yards and 68 touchdowns.
Among active players, no quarterback-receiver combo has more receptions or touchdowns.
A six-time Pro Bowl selection, Adams ranks second among all active players in touchdown catches (96), and fourth in both receptions (890) and yards (10,990).
The Raiders acquired Adams prior to the 2022 season for a first- and second-round draft pick, and then signed him to a five-year, $140million contract with $65.7million guaranteed.
In his first season in Las Vegas with his former college quarterback, Derek Carr, Adams had 100 catches for 1,516 yards and a league-leading 14 touchdowns to earn a third straight first-team All-Pro selection. The Raiders, however, finished 6-11 and Carr was benched late in the season.
Las Vegas went 8-9 in 2023, with Adams finishing with 103 receptions for 1,144 yards and eight TDs.
The Raiders are off to a sluggish start this season at 2-4 and Adams has missed the last three games with a hamstring injury, while there had been speculation that the star receiver was seeking a trade.
He now joins a team that is also scuffling, as New York also dropped to 2-4 with its latest defeat with Rodgers throwing a costly interception in the final minutes.
If his hamstring is healthy enough, Adams could be on the field Sunday night, when the Jets visit the 4-2 Pittsburgh Steelers.
Buffalo Bills extend New York Jets' skid
Josh Allen threw two touchdown passes and ran for another touchdown, and the Buffalo Bills intercepted Aaron Rodgers with under two minutes left to hold on for a 23-20 win over the turmoil-laden New York Jets on Monday.
Tyler Bass' 22-yard field goal with 3:43 remaining snapped a 20-20 tie and helped send New York (2-4) to its third straight loss in its first game since firing head coach Robert Saleh last week and replacing him with defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich.
The Jets also stripped offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett of play-calling duties during their shake-up, with passing game coordinator Todd Downing taking over that role for Monday's game.
The switch allowed Rodgers to throw for a season-high 294 yards and two touchdowns, including a 52-yard Hail Mary heave to Allen Lazard to end the first half. However, the four-time NFL MVP's final pass of the night, a deep ball intended for Mike Williams, was picked off by Taron Johnson with 1:52 left to play before the Bills ran out the clock.
Allen had a 1-yard touchdown run in the first quarter, then connected with Mack Hollins and Dawson Knox on touchdown passes in the second as the Bills built a 20-10 lead prior to Lazard's leaping grab in the end zone just before half-time.
The Jets tied the game at 20-20 on Greg Zuerlein's 22-yard field goal with 6:13 left in the third quarter, but the veteran kicker missed two other attempts later on that would have put New York ahead.
Allen finished with 215 yards on 19-of-25 passing as Buffalo (4-2) snapped a two-game losing streak and extended its lead atop the AFC East to 1 1/2 games. Rookie Ray Davis rushed for a career-high 97 yards in place of Bills' top running back James Cook, who was inactive with a toe injury.
Lazard racked up 114 yards on six catches in the loss, while the Jets also got 107 yards and a touchdown on eight catches from Garrett Wilson and 113 rushing yards from Breece Hall.
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