In the wake of his decision to bench quarterback Zach Wilson, Jets head coach Robert Saleh said that he intends to reinsert Wilson into the starting lineup at some point this season. But as Jonathan Jones of CBS Sports writes, Wilson is unlikely to return to the field before Week 15 (barring injury), and if the team remains in playoff contention with Mike White under center, Wilson can probably expect to stay on the sidelines for the rest of the year.
Joe Flacco, who started the first three games of the 2022 campaign while Wilson was battling knee trouble, will serve as White’s backup for Sunday’s Week 12 matchup with the Bears, so he will get the nod if White should get injured during the Chicago contest. If White sustains a lingering injury while New York remains in the playoff hunt, Saleh could be faced with a difficult Flacco vs. Wilson decision, one that he would obviously prefer to avoid.
Like Jones, Rich Cimini of ESPN.com says that White will remain the QB1 if the Jets are winning with him under center. A successful run from White would be a boon to Gang Green’s playoff chances this year, though Cimini believes it would also complicate the team’s offseason plans. Wilson has yet to start more than seven games in a row in his young career, and at this point, it’s probably premature to write off his chances to become a legitimate NFL starter. Still, the 6-4 Jets are looking to solidify their status as contenders for the foreseeable future, and they need to know if Wilson will be part of that future or if they need to begin looking elsewhere.
New York may also need to make a decision on offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur this offseason. As Cimini writes, Wilson’s struggles are LaFleur’s struggles, and Saleh’s express acknowledgement of Wilson’s deteriorating mechanics is not a good look for LaFleur or quarterbacks coach Rob Calabrese.
“I truly believe it starts with me and ends with me, so I’ve got to figure out a way to reset [Wilson], get him back to playing fundamentally sound football and, more importantly, just consistent football, because he’s done some really good things,” LaFleur said. “But I haven’t done a good enough job to get the consistency out of him. So that starts and ends with me.”
According to Jones, the team believes Wilson has turned an emotional corner, as evidenced by the apologies he recently issued to his teammates. Whether or not he has the chance to reestablish himself on the field this year will depend in large part on White’s performance in the coming weeks.
He doesn’t do the panic runs backward and ridiculous hero ball attempts Wilson does, and he had that one game where he executed the dink and dunk offense really well, but White as starter will get pretty ugly, too.
You’ll know it’s gone beyond ugly when there is an update that Brett Favre is looking through his closet for the Jets jersey.
OK, great, but what is a “Zonovan”; and when did we get one on the roster?
Zonovan Knight, aka “Bam” Knight, is a human being. An African-American male running back that was undrafted free agent out of NC State. He was called up to the practice squad because recent trade acquisition James Robinson is “still learning the playbook” despite being active the week before. Irregardless, Zonovan looked great as a runner, receiver and kick returner.
What does it matter if he is African American male? Pretty sure all nfl players are male. And skin color really doesn’t matter.
If you read the original post, the commenter snarkly wanted to know what a “Zonovan” was (as if Google doesn’t exist), so I was being as specific as possible. Just having some fun
The OLine in NE was down 2 starters, and Wilson and Robinson played abysmal against a top 5 defense. Oline couldn’t pass protect or run block. Herbig and Bad Max Mitchell come back to OLine following week, against the Bears bottom 5 defense and White and Bam look like Stars!!! Zach DOES need to work on his footwork, but he doesn’t deserve the persecution he is getting in the media-click world, and White is not the next Namath. Let’s see how White performs against Vikings & Bills, how Zach progresses on the Scout team and whether the OLine can stay healthy before we start crown anyone QB for the season/future. Go JETS!
*Mad Max
White was 22/28 in the rain. Zach blamed the wind and didn’t take accountability. The QB is the CEO of the team. Has to be the bridge from coaching staff and player to the fans. Garrett Wilson said people need to be held accountable in practice. Elijah Moore and Denzel Mims requested trades.
Mike White found a way to make everyone happy. I’m not saying Mike White is Mr Right, but he’s Mr Right Now.