On October 31, 2021, the New York Jets put together their best Halloween trick orchestrated by backup quarterback Mike White — a total unknown who was starting his first NFL game at the time.
Gang Green defeated the Super Bowl-bound Cincinnati Bengals, 34-31, on the back of a 17-point fourth quarter. The result was simply stunning, and of course, White’s stat line stole the headlines:
37 of 45, 405 passing yards, three touchdowns, two interceptions (the major blemish), and a 107.9 rating.
New Artifacts: The jersey of @nyjets QB @MikeWhiteQB & game ball from their Week 8 victory. He completed 37 passes for 405 yards & 3 TDs. His 37 completions are the most by a QB in their 1st start. Also became the 2nd QB since 1950 to throw for 400+ yards in debut.
The career understudy even made it to Canton after the Pro Football Hall of Fame immortalized his jersey and game ball as “artifacts” from a historic performance. On the eve of Super Bowl LVI, Bengals head coach Zac Taylor credited the Jets with teaching his team an all-important lesson that day, one that even helped them win the AFC.
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Taylor References Jets Loss
During his media address on February 11 — just two days before the Super Bowl — Taylor discussed the Week 8 shocker.
“You can’t allow a team to regain the momentum,” Taylor told reporters. “Any team that loses a game can always say — ‘Oh, man, we had it and we let it get away.’ That’s every team that’s ever lost. We just had to learn from specific moments in that game offensively and defensively, moments where if we could have held onto the momentum here we would have won this game, but we didn’t. [The Jets] did.”
Shaq Lawson made the Mike White game happen with the Jets first pick of the year
Aaaaand that was pretty much it. See ya
Cincy has become a road warrior down the stretch, winning tough games in Tennessee and Kansas City to make it to the Super Bowl. In order to earn their first-ever Lombardi trophy, Taylor’s guys will have to win one more game on the road.
For the second straight season, the host franchise has reached the big game. Last year, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers became champions at home in Raymond James Stadium. This time around, the Los Angeles Rams have the honor and the advantage at SoFi Stadium.
The Week 8 loss aided the Bengals in this regard too. “Part of it was playing on the road,” Taylor explained. “It wasn’t like the stadium was packed but I felt the energy in that crowd supporting that team. I guarantee you the Jets felt that as well. Those are moments that we store away and we have to learn from and it helped us play really well on the road later in the season.”
There you have it, White and the Jets got Cincy hot. I’m kidding, but Bengals QB Joe Burrow does love playing with a chip on his shoulder and it sounds like Gang Green helped put one there.
No gift basket needed, just send some of that Super Bowl magic the Jets way in 2022.
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White’s Future in New York
As we know, White is a restricted free agent in 2022. On Friday, December 24, the backup QB spoke on his chances of returning next year.
“I really enjoy guys here and on this staff, and I think we all work really well together and I think we’ve got a good QB room,” he told the media. “Hopefully, I can be here for the years to come.”
According to Paul Esden Jr. of Heavy on Jets: “[New York] will likely do a right of first refusal which is hovering around $2.4 million for 2022. If any other NFL team attempted to sign him to an offer sheet this offseason, the Jets could match and keep White. Or they could let him walk and they would receive a fifth-round pick as compensation per ESPN’s Rich Cimini.”
The only other option is to place a second-round tender on White, which Esden noted “seems unlikely” due to the cost.
A quick fan-favorite, Jets nation would love to have the miracle-man back in 2022 — even if he never has to play behind Zach Wilson. There’s something comforting about having a backup quarterback you can rely on, especially one who already knows the playbook inside and out.
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Jets ‘Mike White Game’ Helped Bengals During Super Bowl Run