Getty New York Jets quarterbacks Aaron Rodgers and Zach Wilson warming up ahead of an NFL game.
Zach Wilson has been benched for the third time by the New York Jets “and this will almost certainly be the last time,” per Zack Rosenblatt of The Athletic.
Aaron Rodgers joined “The Pat McAfee Show” on Tuesday November 21 and shared an emotional confession about how everything has played out.
“We need a spark and obviously this was the decision that was made. I feel for Zach, I love Zach, Zach’s such a great kid. I do think he still has a bright future in the league,” Rodgers explained.
“This was obviously not the way any of us thought this was gonna go down. It was going to be me, and my show and Zach getting to learn and watch it firsthand and not have the pressure to go out there and play. Obviously, this is disappointing. I have some personal guilt around the whole thing. I mean I’m pissed I wasn’t able to play and frustrated that if I was out there I feel like I’d be playing well and obviously there would be different narratives around our team. Zach would again have the opportunity to learn and grow and see what it looks like without the pressure on him. He’d be able to sit in those meetings and go through the season and just kind of watch me in my process. So, I’m disappointed and sad about that.”
Damn… Aaron Rodgers talking about the Zach Wilson situation on the #Jets was emotional:
‘This was obviously not the way any of us thought this was gonna go down. It was going to be me & my show & Zach getting to learn & watch it firsthand & not have the pressure to go out…
Wilson’s Future Is Very Much in Question With the Jets
Wilson did not get that opportunity to sit behind Rodgers in 2023. A few plays into the season Rodgers blew out his Achilles and Wilson was forced into the QB1 role.
After a 10-game sample size this season, the former BYU product is being demoted to third string quarterback.
Tim Boyle will take over as QB1 for the Week 12 home game against the Miami Dolphins. Trevor Siemian was signed off of the practice squad to the active roster on Tuesday, November 21 and will serve as the primary backup.
Head coach Robert Saleh clarified that Wilson will be the emergency third quarterback for the Black Friday game. The NFL instituted a new rule this offseason that allows a team to have another quarterback option to go to if the first two quarterbacks get injured and that that third player is on the active roster.
When Saleh was asked about the future of Wilson in a Jets uniform, he responded, “we’ll deal with it in the offseason.”
“We’ll deal with it in the offseason” – Robert Saleh on Zach Wilson’s future with the #Jets 👀
Saleh shared a similar message during his radio appearance on “The Michael Kay Show” and indicated that Wilson is unlikely to return to the lineup outside of an injury or something unforeseen.
.@DonLagreca asked #Jets HC Robert Saleh if it’s possible that Zach Wilson has thrown his last pass as a Jet?
After a 2 second pause…. ‘we’ll address that in the offseason’ + said you never know what could happen the rest of this season
Wilson Will Be Cryogenically Frozen Until the Jets Offseason
There was a thought from several team insiders that the Jets could simply decide to rip the Band-Aid off and cut their losses. Like the Jets did with running back Michael Carter last week.
However, the Jets opted to kick that can down the road by making Wilson a healthy scratch instead.
Saleh told the media that the team never considered cutting Wilson mid-season.
The Jets will have to make a decision on Wilson’s fifth-year option in May of 2024. However, Rosenblatt said on “The Can’t Wait Podcast” that he doesn’t expect the quarterback to be on the roster come that time next year.
The Jets would lose money if they dumped Wilson in the middle of this season. Even if they released Wilson during the offseason they will see no financial benefits to that decision. However, if they are able to trade him to a team, they would be able to save some cap space in that scenario.