Aaron Rodgers Has ‘Personal Guilt’ About Jets Benching Zach Wilson But Thinks ‘There's Enough Blame to Go Around’

Aaron Rodgers is defending Zach Wilson after the New York Jets benched the latter for Friday’s game against the Miami Dolphins.

During his weekly appearance on the Pat McAfee Show Tuesday, Rodgers, who's been sidelined since suffering an Achilles tendon tear in Week 1, shared his thoughts on the recent benching of Wilson. Earlier this week, the Jets announced the second overall pick will now serve as the third quarterback behind Tim Boyle and Trevor Siemian.

“I feel for Zach, I love Zach. Zach is such a great kid," Rodgers said. "And I do think he still has a bright future in the league. This has been a tough go for all of us. A lot of times in these situations, there’s certain guys they’ve got to scapegoat. I think there’s enough blame to go around at a number of different positions.”

Rodgers added, “This was obviously not the way any of us thought this was going to go down. It was going to be me and my show, and Zach getting to learn and watch it firsthand, and not having the pressure to go out there and play. So obviously this is disappointing and I have some personal guilt about the whole thing,”

The four-time MVP's comments arrive days after Fox Sports' Jay Glazer reported Aaron Rodgers has informed the Jets he plans to return to practice soon. Rodgers addressed the timetable during his appearance on Tuesday's Pat McAfee Show.

"I've said that I'd love to be trending towards practicing by my birthday," he said.

Rodgers, who is only three months removed from his Achilles injury, turns 40 years old on Dec. 2.