The Jets know who their starting quarterback will be in Week 1, but there are still questions about who will claim the No. 2 spot on the depth chart.
James Morgan and Mike White are currently the only other quarterbacks on New York’s roster. Neither projects as a top-notch candidate to back up Zach Wilson once the regular season begins, making it possible that Joe Douglas looks outside the organization for an answer at the position.
As it turns out, Douglas has already started his pursuit of a potential veteran backup and mentor for Wilson. The Jets and Bears have discussed a potential trade for Nick Foles, according to Brian Costello of the New York Post. However, a deal between the two sides seems unlikely at this point in time.
Foles is due to make $8 million over the next two seasons — an expensive price to pay for a backup quarterback, no matter his potential value. Chicago would have to eat some of the 32-year-old’s contract in order to facilitate a trade with the Jets or any other team, but it remains to be seen if that is something Bears general manager Ryan Pace is interested in doing.
With Andy Dalton entering training camp as Chicago’s starting quarterback and Justin Fields waiting in the wings as his successor, there is no longer a place for Foles with the Bears. New York could wait to see if Chicago cuts Foles before the end of the summer, but that also seems unlikely given the $14 million dead money charge the Bears will have to account for if they release him.
Foles profiles as an ideal player to pair with Wilson as he enters his rookie year. He led the Eagles to a Super Bowl win over the Patriots and Douglas knows the kind of impact he can have from a leadership perspective better than anyone stemming from the time they spent together in Philadelphia. Nonetheless, the business side of football figures to win out in this situation, likely meaning the Jets won’t be able to get their hands on Foles.
Assuming that is the eventual outcome, New York is prepared to ride with its current crop of quarterbacks when it travels to Carolina to kick off the 2021 season. Robert Saleh did not seem to be in much of a rush to add a veteran quarterback when quizzed on the subject in June and while having one would likely help Wilson, there is no guarantee that happens if the circumstances surrounding the veteran addition are not just right.
“I know [White and Morgan have] had their ups and downs, just like Zach has but, it doesn’t mean that just because they’re veteran it’ll help the quarterback,” Saleh said. “There’s a match that has to happen, there’s a scheme familiarity that has to happen. If you just bring in a veteran that doesn’t know anything about your scheme, he’s learning just like the rookie is.
“Aside from helping him rehab… and study habits — which I think Zach, and that entire quarterback room, is already ahead of the curve on, with how they handle their bodies and study — I don’t know if there’s much value aside from being comfortable that if something hits the fan, that you have a veteran who’s played football. It’s more of a comforting feeling, rather than trying to work your ass off to develop the quarterbacks that are already in the building.”
