The massive question mark entering the 2023 Jets season was on full display at Wednesday’s training camp practice. Nearly every time Aaron Rodgers dropped back, there was a defensive lineman closing in on him. Nearly every time he handed the ball off, there was a would-be tackler within a few yards.

There was no escaping it Wednesday — the Jets’ offensive line looked terrible.

Now, the question becomes was that a one-day stumble after other strong practices in camp or was it an omen of what could derail this Jets’ season and the magic they believe Rodgers can bring?

The offensive line is undoubtedly a work in progress. Outside of right guard Alijah Vera-Tucker, it is hard to feel confident in anything about the O-line.

Starting left tackle Duane Brown still has not practiced as he recovers from shoulder surgery, and no one knows when he will be out there. Mekhi Becton’s annual knee injury arrived early this year and he sat out Wednesday’s practice. Billy Turner and Max Mitchell are battling for the starting right tackle job. There is a competition at center with Connor McGovern and rookie Joe Tippmann. Left guard Laken Tomlinson is coming off a disappointing year.

That sound you heard is Rodgers running for his life.

This is not what you want for a 39-going-on-40-year-old quarterback. We all saw in the Super Bowl LV in February 2021 that even a young superstar like Patrick Mahomes will struggle if he is not protected.

Rodgers was once one of the best at escaping the pocket and running, but he admittedly has slowed down in recent years.

“I still enjoy extending plays,” Rodgers said Wednesday. “I just enjoy being in the pocket and not taking a lot of shots a little bit more.”

One of the areas Rodgers slipped in last year was throwing while under pressure. He ranked 20th out of 31 qualifying quarterbacks with a QBR of 17 when under pressure, according to ESPN.

It is too soon to press the panic button for this line, but the Jets have to be sweating behind the scenes and not just from this heat wave.

The defensive line abused the offensive line on Wednesday. Jermaine Johnson, Carl Lawson and rookie Will McDonald were having a field day rushing the passer. Now, the Jets’ defensive line is pretty damn good, so it is a challenge for the offense every day to slow them down, but there are more than a few Jets opponents who also have good defensive lines and they will have to show up against them.

Rodgers can help the offensive line with how quickly he gets rid of the ball, but that won’t camouflage every wart.

Coach Robert Saleh indicated that the joint practices against the Panthers in two weeks and against the Buccaneers in three weeks will be key points in determining what the starting offensive line will look like.

It is still early but the Jets are going to need their starting five to get time together along with Rodgers at some point in camp.

“I don’t want to put timelines on it because you’ve still got Tampa. We’ve got Carolina,” Saleh said. “There’s a lot of things we have to go through. There are a lot of games left, but those inter-squad scrimmages with Carolina and Tampa I think are going to be a big measuring stick. We’ve got a lot of time here.”

The start of camp has been an Aaron Rodgers lovefest. Fans, teammates and coaches have all gushed about the future Hall of Famer. Rodgers talked Wednesday about how much fun he is having.

All of these good vibes will disappear quickly if the Jets don’t keep him upright.

The offensive line is the massive question mark for this team. They better find an answer over the next month.