You can view all of this through the prism of cynicism and skepticism. You are well within your rights to be jaded about this. You have earned that much, whether you are a fan of the New York Jets or merely a fan of professional sports at large.

Aaron Rodgers?

He’s old. He’s coming off a terrible year (by his standards, anyway). He comes at a cost. You may disagree with him — or worse — on any number of issues ranging from his support of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to his endorsements of psychedelics to his stances on vaccination, or perhaps you stand right beside him on all of that. All of that is fair, and all of that is in play. You have earned your wait-and-see approach.

Here’s the thing, though:

It really is a joy to see an athlete of his status, his gravitas, his elite ability, ply his wares in our fair town. We are way early in the process, sure. Rodgers only has a couple of practices under his belt. There’s a lot that can go wrong between here and January. Hell, there’s a lot that can go wrong between here and Monday night, Sept. 11, when the Jets play the Bills and it all starts for real.

But every now and again, it’s not a terrible thing to simply appreciate the ability to see someone that good at his craft doing it on behalf of New York.

Was Kevin Durant’s stay in Brooklyn perfect? Hardly. But there were a lot of nights the past three years when you could buy a ticket, go to Barclays Center, and see one of the three or four most gifted basketball players on the planet do what he does best, and what he does better than almost anyone else. Did it end poorly? It did. But if you saw Durant in Game 5 or Game 7 of the 2021 playoffs against Milwaukee, if you watched what he did with your own eyes, you know you saw something you’ll remember forever.

Was Jacob deGrom’s stay in Queens perfect? It was not. But there were a lot of days and nights between 2014 and 2022 when you could buy a ticket, go to Citi Field and see one of the most brilliant craftsmen in all of baseball. Did it end poorly? It did. But if you saw deGrom when he was at the peak of his powers, making major league hitters look like Legion ball scrubs, you know you saw something you’ll see forever.

We have been lucky around here, even if the championship drought sometimes allows us to forget that. We have seen Aaron Judge chase Roger Maris. We saw a perfect game from Domingo German a few weeks ago. We’ve seen Eli Manning at his best, and we’ve seen Henrik Lundqvist at his best, and we’ve seen Jason Kidd at his best, and Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera and Michael Strahan — which means we have seen the very best do what they do best. If you are a sports fan, there is nothing that compares to that.

Maybe Rodgers will turn out to be long past his best. Maybe he will make more news off the field than on. Maybe he will be Johnny Unitas as a Charger, or Joe Willie Namath as a Ram, or Russell Wilson as a Bronco. That’s certainly within the realm of possibility.

But maybe — just maybe — we’ll get Tom Brady as a Buccaneer, figuring it out all the way to one last Super Bowl. Maybe — just maybe — we’ll get Joe Montana as a Chief, who never did add one last title to his collection but taught Kansas City a lesson in professionalism and winning that is still felt today. Maybe — just maybe — we’ll get Peyton Manning as a Bronco, who may have been a shadow of himself his final year when Denver won it all, but who blazed as brilliantly as he ever did in the years just before then, revitalizing a team and a city.

Maybe — just maybe — we’ll get Rodgers at his best as a Jet.

And if that happens, it will be something to see. It will be something to remember. It will be something to share with your friends, and your kids, and the others who share your section at MetLife Stadium, and the folks who watch with you at the neighborhood saloon every Sunday.

If that happens …

Well, as Spanky and Our Gang used to rhapsodize: Sunday will never be the same.

When they were both young men, my father would occasionally find himself playing a place in Queens — usually Astoria, usually Riccardo’s — and every now and then local hero Tony Bennett, just at the start of his fame, would pop on stage for a song or two.

Occasionally Bennett’s remarkable voice would “drift” — my dad’s word — and Dad would offer a helpful “carrying note” on his trumpet, nudging him back on track, and every time Bennett would turn to my father, smile and salute him, his way of saying thanks.

After one such gig, probably 1954 or so, Bennett asked my father to join his traveling band. It’s impossible to know fully how incredibly tempting that offer probably was, but there was a problem: Dad had fallen in love with the Irish girl who lived across the street, who also happened to be his sister Kutchie’s best friend. He had to pick between Ann McMahon and spending 250 nights a year on the road. Many years later, telling that story to me, he said softly: “I made the right call.”

I, for one, am eternally grateful for the choice he made.

Godspeed, Mr. Bennett. Maybe look up your old horn player if you get a chance, deal?

Robert Feuerstein: So Aaron Boone finally admits his team stinks. Reminds me of Bud Selig’s book “For The Good Of The Game,” wherein he admits he was late to recognize the game had a steroid era. I’m inclined to believe both knew long before their public admittance.

Vac: I half-expected the skipper to go all Captain Renault on us — “I’m shocked — SHOCKED! — to find that bad baseball is going on here.”

Charlie Cook: Mike, I think the Mets should pay for the box suite for St. John’s for the remainder of the season. Rick Pitino just getting started makes one dream of days of old (early ’80s) at old Alumni Hall. What say you?

Vac: I say it might be worth the Mets’ time to pay for the Johnnies to go on the road with them, too.

@NYCJayhawk: Let’s kiss goodbye to Brian Cashman.

@MikeVacc: It wasn’t just the New York headline writers that Carlos Rodon inspired this week, it seems.

Matt Deakin: I love baseball and watch as many Yankees and Mets games as I can, but lately it makes me feel like a rubbernecker slowing down to take a look at the car wreck on the other side of the highway. So disappointing.

Vac: And if that doesn’t sum up the summer of ’23 so far, what does?