Aaron Rodgers spent lots of quality practice time with the Jets last season up until his September Achilles tendon injury, then remarkably returned to practice the last three weeks of last season. And he led the way at most of the offseason/OTA practices.

So Wednesday's first practice of Jets training camp was more of the same for No. 8.

"It felt pretty good," Rodgers told reporters following practice. "It was hot. It was kind of a grind. It reminded me of one of those old-school practices, even though it was only 90 minutes. It was good."

As for his Achilles and when he might be able to declare himself back to being 100 percent himself, he said he's close.

"It's going to take a little time, but I feel great," he said. "The last 5 percent of being 100 percent is just the mental part. And today on the last play, being able to move in the pocket quickly and not think about it, that's a part of the last 5 percent."

Of course, Rodgers, who hadn't been available to beat reporters since the middle of OTAs, did miss a small percentage of important June practices — he was a continent away from One Jets Drive during the final two days of the mandatory minicamp. But as much conversation as those missed days generated outside the building, Rodgers, head coach Robert Saleh and the Jets all seem to agree that, as the coach said, "We talked beforehand, so we're on the same page with everything that happened."

What happened, Rodgers explained, was a long-awaited vacation trip for him and some friends to one of A-Rod's bucket-list destinations: Egypt.

"I originally scheduled it based on the previous year's [offseason] schedule, which had us out, I believe, by the 9th or 10th [of June]," he said. This year's minicamp, however, ran through June 13. "I saw the schedule and I was trying to move some things around and it didn't happen."

Despite those minicamp days being in effect the final OTA practices of the offseason schedule, Rodgers knew how his absence would be perceived and would have to be handled.

"I made a point to be at every OTA. I was at the physicals day as part of the minicamp, then missed the two practices," Rodgers said. "I had talks with all my teammates about it. I think they understood. I think it was more an issue outside the building than inside. Robert and I are great. I'm an adult, I knew what I was getting into, I knew a fine was coming. It is what it is."

And what it seems to be for the 2024 Jets is no big deal, full speed ahead. As Saleh said after the opening practice:

"He can still sling it. His lower-half movement looked really good, too. He's a vocal leader, a guy that everybody looks up to for leadership on the field. Aaron's fantastic, he's an unbelievable teammate, he has a wealth of knowledge and an understanding of football that pretty much makes him another coach on the field. So when he speaks, our players listen."

LB Quincy Williams can attest to Rodgers' E.F. Hutton effect on his teammates.

"One thing about Aaron, he doesn't mind stopping in the middle of practice and say, 'Let me talk to you real quick and show you the reason why I threw that,' " said the Jets All-Pro and defending Curtis Martin Team MVP. "He's a gold-jacket type quarterback, and anything he says, I'm taking into consideration in my game."

"He's a leader," CB Sauce Gardner said of Rodgers. "When he's in the building, he has a standard and it's the standard we follow. Of course his standard aligns with what Coach Saleh has set. We know the best teams are player-led teams and Aaron is a true leader."

The leadership is what will carry Rodgers and his teammates from here through the Jets' final game, whenever it falls on the 2025 calendar. And that part of A-Rod's game has been at 100 percent for his entire Jets stay.

"I think it's important that you bring the energy and the enthusiasm every single day," he said. "You have to set the standard by the way you show up every day, be active in meetings, be attentive, tap into the energy of the team. ... There's a lot of time for fun, hanging with the guys, joking and stuff, but when we're practicing or we're in drill work, we need to be intentional."

And the difficult goal of all that intentionality for the Jets is the Big Easy. As in New Orleans, Caesars Superdome, Feb. 9. Super Bowl LIX. The Lombardi Trophy.

"That has to be the goal," Rodgers said of winning the championship. "Every single year there are eight to 12 teams, probably less, but eight to 12 that could actually do it. We're one of those eight to 12."

"A guy like that just demands greatness," WR Garrett Wilson said of his quarterback. "We want to match that, find ways to bring that out of ourselves. If we can do what he demands, we'll be hard to stop."