Expectations are Empire State Building-high for the New York Jets in 2023 with the offseason additions of quarterback Aaron Rodgers and running back Dalvin Cook.
Cook believes Gang Green can break the 55-year streak of Super Bowl futility.
"I think it's very realistic," Cook told the New York Post on Monday. "Obviously you look at the roster, you look at the people we've added and the things that we already had, just combining that in one, and I think it's something to be excited about. We just gotta go out there and do our part."
In six seasons in Minnesota, the furthest the Vikings made it was the 2017 NFC Championship Game, which Cook didn't participate in due to injury. He played in a 2019 Wild Card win and Divisional Round loss and last year's playoff appearance -- a WC loss to the Giants.
The goal is to get to a Super Bowl.
"That's why I came, that's why I'm here, to help any way I can to get to where we need to go, and that's holding up the trophy, and that's what we're trying to do," Cook said.
On paper, the Jets read like a playoff team. Four-time MVP quarterback in Aaron Rodgers, stud running back duo in Cook and Breece Hall, No. 1 wide receiver in Garrett Wilson, potentially dominant defense with a menacing front and star corner in Sauce Gardner. The big questions are along the offensive line, whether there is enough depth throughout the roster and whether new offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett can bring ingenuity to an offense that's struggled for years.
"Yeah, we got the pieces. We just gotta go put it together," Cook said.
Signing Cook was viewed as the final piece to get the Jets into the Super Bowl conversation. He arrives as a workhorse who can allow the Jets to bring back Hall cautiously from his torn ACL. When healthy, Cook views himself and Hall as the top RB duo in the NFL.
"In my eyes, I think so," Cook said on Monday.
With the first Sunday of the 2023 season a dozen days away, we're closing in on the offseason chatter turning into on-field prove-it time.
