No one can say the New York Jets didn’t give Zach Wilson a shot.
They already benched him for awful play earlier this season, not leaving the door open for him to come back in, barring extreme circumstances. Thanks to a Mike White injury, Wilson would get the opportunity to start again.
And after an uneven but somewhat promising panopticon of a game against the Detroit Lions, the ground collapsed underneath Wilson against the putrid Jacksonville Jaguars defense (27th in yards coming in). Inevitably, the young QB’s awful performance — ironically juxtaposed to the bright Trevor Lawrence — led head coach Robert Saleh to do what he must for the sake of his team fighting for its postseason life:
Bench the former No. 2 overall pick. Again.
Saleh simply had no choice, given Wilson’s past precedent and the utter lifelessness of the Jets’ offense with him under center. With Wilson at the helm, the Jets’ offense did not cross midfield once of its own volition on Thursday night. The Jets punted five times on seven Wilson possessions as the QB threw a pick on another. In all actuality, an early Quinnen Williams forced fumble was the only reason the Jets put up three points while Wilson played quarterback for them.
No wonder Jets fans were thrilled to see someone else, literally anyone else in an eventual 19-3 loss that likely shuttered the team’s playoff hopes:
Chris Streveler is in. LOUD cheers.
— Zack Rosenblatt (@ZackBlatt) December 23, 2022
And, so, Wilson’s final stat line before being benched near the end of the third quarter — 9-of-18, 92 yards (a paltry 5.1 yards per attempt!), and one interception — is a perfect microcosm of the Wilson era in New York. Consistently inconsistent, without a rudder, and with no sign of any promise on the horizon.
That backup Chris Streveler — a man more known for his CFL exploits and who was on the practice squad only weeks ago — immediately took the Jets’ offense down on a 73-yard drive speaks volumes of what this team needs. Even an average quarterback could be a better facilitator of a talented roster with guys like Garrett Wilson at receiver. Wilson is not average. Far from it.
Moving forward, it’ll be hard to believe Wilson plays for the Jets again this season. Quite frankly, it’s hard to believe him ever starting for the Jets again, now having wasted two shots to prove himself. High draft status or not, you have to deliver at some point. You only get an extended leash for so long before patience runs thin.
Whether the Jets and Saleh can salvage anything out of what is an otherwise mostly solid squad moving forward, having very likely missed on a No. 2 overall pick, is a different question. Most squads don’t recover from such massive blunders, having built their entire operation around that QB’s hopeful success. Maybe an experienced veteran signal-caller (Tom Brady?) is the move in the offseason, but that’s never a sure thing.
The Jets benched Zach Wilson again on Thursday night, knowing full well what that might say about their plans and long-term prospects. The full and costly ramifications of what it means for the franchise’s future moving forward are likely only beginning.