Aaron Rodgers reached out to Kirk Cousins this week after the Vikings quarterback suffered a season-ending Achilles injury Sunday against the Packers.
Rodgers, who tore his Achilles during Week 1, is attempting to make it back to the Jets before the end of the season.
“I really like Kirk and I’ve competed against him over the years and I have a lot of respect for him,” Rodgers said during “The Pat McAfee Show” on Tuesday. “It was good to talk to him. Hopefully I encouraged him a little bit. It definitely sucks.
“He was playing really really well, especially what a crazy situation, everybody’s trying to write him off and saying everybody’s gonna get traded there and blow that thing up and then they win a few in a row and then they said, ‘Oh, now they’re a playoff team’ and Kirk’s obviously playing excellent.
“So, disappointed for him and that injury, but passed along all the information I could and let him know what’s been working for me.”
Rodgers said he recommended the doctor who performed his surgery, Dr. Neil ElAttrache, in Los Angeles and his rehab team to Cousins.
“That’s the direction I’d probably point anybody to go but it just depends on what they’re willing to do and how much freedom they have to get out West,” Rodgers said. “But definitely the type of surgery I did. I think it’s going to be way more mainstream moving forward. It’s not for everybody. It’s not for every body type.
“The other thing is how quickly do you want to come back? I said ‘let’s come back as quick as possible. But Kirk’s in no rush. Like, he’s not going to be able to make it back for this season.”
Jets defensive lineman Al Woods also tore his Achilles on Sunday against the Giants, a few weeks after offensive lineman Alijah Vera-Tucker had suffered the same injury.
Cousins and the Vikings had opened the season with a 1-4 record before winning their past three games.
They made a trade with Arizona for quarterback Josh Dobbs before Tuesday’s trade deadline.
“With Kirk, that just looked like a thing he’s done 100 times,” Rodgers said. “Pumped one way, reset back, threw a seam [pass]. And you could tell by the video you saw kind of the reverberation of his leg, up and down. When I saw that I knew it was gonna be an Achilles. It just sucks.”