The New York Jets are dealing with a worst-case scenario.
They lost their rookie quarterback Zach Wilson to a PCL strain and he’s going to miss between two and four weeks of action.
Up next they have a tough matchup against the top team in the AFC conference, the 5-2 Cincinnati Bengals. Although the question on everyone’s mind is who will step up in his place?
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A Very Unusual Approach
The #Jets Zone w/ @BoyGreen25:
– What the actual f&*% on the Joe Flacco situation
– Going through Robert Saleh’s confusing explanation
– Why this trade is TERRIBLE
– Answering your mailbag questions
On Monday evening the Jets made a trade with the Philadelphia Eagles to bring back veteran quarterback Joe Flacco. He spent last season with the team as the primary backup and was forced to suit up in five games.
This offseason Flacco had the choice to return to the team or go seek out greener pastures and he chose the latter.
He ended up joining the Philadelphia Eagles where there was a clearer path to a potential starting gig with an unproven Jalen Hurts in the quarterback room. Ultimately the former Oklahoma star won the gig and Flacco was sent to the bench.
General manager Joe Douglas saw an opportunity to bring a familiar face back to the table in a time of need for a low price (conditional sixth-rounder in 2022) and capitalized.
Most assumed with the trade that Flacco would immediately be inserted into the Jets starting lineup, but Saleh cleared that up during the Wednesday presser.
It Seems Like Things Are Going in a Weird Direction
Saleh announced that Mike White would be getting his first career NFL start on Sunday vs the Bengals. The Jets only keep two quarterbacks active on gameday which means the only question remaining is who will be the backup on Sunday?
Flacco won’t report to the team until Friday due to “personal reasons” but is participating in all of the required meetings “virtually” according to Saleh.
It seems hard to believe a 36-year old quarterback will be able to join a team two days out from a Week 8 matchup and start an NFL game. Fridays in the NFL are normally nothing more than a walkthrough.
With that being the case, veteran Josh Johnson is likely set to be the No. 2 quarterback on Sunday. If all the team wanted was a veteran presence in the room, why did they trade for Flacco? What purpose does Johnson now serve on the practice squad? Very confusing.
So that likely means the quarterback they traded for won’t be available on Sunday and the next game after that is a short week contest vs the Indianapolis Colts on Thursday Night Football.
The hope inside the Jets’ building is that Wilson will be ready for the Week 10 matchup against the Buffalo Bills. If that happens then the green and white traded a draft pick for a quarterback that might play one game?
Seems like an odd use of resources for a team that could’ve solved this problem back in the offseason by signing a veteran quarterback.
If the Jets really believed in White the way the Jets’ coaching staff describes, then they wouldn’t have traded for Flacco in the first place.
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Jets Reveal Unexpected Quarterback Plan vs. Bengals