The game between the New York Jets and the Houston Texans on Thursday night was not an enjoyable football game. One of the ugliest games of the year, with more combined penalty yards than the Texans had late in the fourth quarter, somehow made for some notable highlights.

The first may be the Jets' most frustrating game of the season. Rookie wide receiver Malachi Corley quickly threw the ball into the end zone, but dropped it to the turf before it actually crossed the goal line.

Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers had a front-row seat to Corley's mistake and spoke about it during an appearance The Pat McAfee Show on Friday afternoon.

EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ – Aaron Rodgers of the New York Jets looks on during the third quarter against the Houston Texans on October 31, 2024 at MetLife Stadium. (Photo by Luke Hales/Getty Images)

Aaron Rodgers doesn't blame Malachi Corley for making a mistake

Rodgers told McAfee that the Jets had actually alerted the team to this very possibility after seeing Kyle Pitts do almost exactly the same thing a week ago.

“You never know what you’re going to see in a game. I say, 'We get a little presentation every week from our guy about league analysis, time management, time management, things you can do, things you shouldn't do.'” Smash (situation coordinator Dan Shamash) and he showed that Kyle Pitts game – which I think was last week,” Rodgers said.

“So, it’s definitely on his radar. Great play calling. Great execution. The only thing I would say to Malachi, and I said this on the sidelines, is, 'Why would you ever drop the ball? That was your first touchdown.' You celebrate with this thing, you run to the sideline with this thing, you hand it to (an equipment guy) and you say, 'This is mine.'”

“But listen, he was excited. It was a play that happened. It sucks. It's disappointing. Nobody feels worse than him, but it’s kind of a crazy thing,” Rodgers continued.

“I got laughed at because I told Tae (Davante Adams) and Garrett (Wilson), ‘You guys score these touchdowns and hold the ball up before you get into the end zone. I guess I'm an old white guy.' , but can we please just go through the middle of the letters?'”

This is the only way to deal with such situations. Clearly Corley didn't do it on purpose, and now that it's happened, it will never happen again. However, all was forgiven because the Jets were able to win the game. If it weren't for them, it might be a different story.

However, Rodgers' suggestion seems smart: run the letters through the middle. It's almost guaranteed that there will never be any embarrassment.