Woody Johnson discusses influence Aaron Rodgers has on Jets

It sounds like any suggestions that quarterback Aaron Rodgers is actually running the New York Jets behind the scenes won't be going anywhere this offseason. 

As noted by Newsday's Tom Rock and Rich Cimini of ESPN, Jets owner Woody Johnson spoke with reporters on Thursday and made it known that Rodgers "will continue to have a voice in any decisions or strategies that take place this offseason" because Johnson "values the input" of the future Hall of Famer. 

"He is a free thinker," Johnson said about Rodgers. "He’ll say anything. But he is a clear thinker and a deep thinker and he is very very intelligent. He remembers every play he has ever played. He has strong opinions on the way the team is built and we are digesting exactly how to interpret that. You need an interpreter a little bit there. But I couldn’t be more impressed." 

The Jets hired offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett and then acquired numerous players last offseason seemingly to convince Rodgers to complete a move from the Green Bay Packers to the Big Apple. 

Rodgers then suffered a torn Achilles just four offensive plays into the team's regular-season opener, and Johnson has since been blasted by numerous reporters and league insiders for empowering the 40-year-old signal-caller who allegedly is a big reason head coach Robert Saleh is still working for the organization today. 

"The discussions I’ve had in the last couple of months, they’ve seen me about as mad as I can be with what was going on with the offense particularly," Johnson said about chats he's had with Saleh and general manager Joe Douglas. "We have all this talent and we have to deploy talent properly. So, I think they all got the message. This is it. This is the time to go. We’ve got to produce this year. We have to produce this year."

The Jets are now responsible for the longest active playoff drought among the four major North American sports leagues (13 straight seasons). Under Saleh, New York has posted back-to-back 7-10 campaigns. 

"We have to do a lot better than seven [wins]," Johnson said without directly embracing a "playoffs or bust" mantra. "Definitely."