Aaron Rodgers continues to praise the Jets’ 2024 Draft class.
He’s been vocal about his support for first-round tackle Olu Fashanu and already offered his guest house to third-rounder Malachi Corley before he called him his favorite receiver in the class.
Now, Rodgers complimented another Jets’ draft pick: Fourth-round running back Braelon Allen.
“Braelon Allen is now sitting in front of me in a meeting. He’s half my age. I’m going to turn 41 before he turns 21. The guy can’t even drink legally. But he’s a monster,” Rodgers said on The Official Jets Podcast. “I remember him in Wisconsin as a 17-year-old playing in games. I thought that was absolutely crazy. But then you watch videos of him squatting the house, benching three, four plates, whatever the hell he’s doing. He’s a monster. And you’re putting him behind one of the most versatile backs in the league [in Breece Hall].
The Jets drafted Allen, a 6-foot-1 and 235-pound behemoth, out of Wisconsin with the No. 134th pick. He figures to be the team’s No. 2 running back behind Hall as another in-between-the-tackles bruiser. Allen rushed almost 600 times for 3,494 yards and 35 touchdowns in three years with the Badgers.
“I’m a physical, downhill runner,” Allen said about his play style, per the Jets team website. “I try to punish defenders, create contact more than take it and absorb it. I’m more than willing in pass protection, and I’m also able to run routes and catch the ball fairly well. I think I’m a well-rounded back that’s bigger than most, so it’s a little different than what a lot of people are getting.”
It’s hard to gauge the effect a rookie class will have on a team until they take the field for a live game. But for now, Rodgers is saying all the right things about arguably the most important collection of rookies the Jets have had in the Joe Douglas-Robert Saleh era.