The New York Jets will start Zach Wilson at quarterback Sunday against the Houston Texans and, “God willing,” the rest of the season, coach Robert Saleh said Wednesday.
Trevor Siemian, who replaced Tim Boyle in Sunday’s loss to the Falcons, will serve as the backup, and newly signed Brett Rypien will be the emergency QB this week, Saleh added. The Jets waived Boyle on Tuesday and signed Rypien from the Seattle Seahawks’ practice squad.
Multiple team sources said Monday the team was leaning toward turning to Wilson again, but he was hesitant about returning to the role.
Saleh said Wednesday that Wilson is “burned in” and looking forward to the opportunity.
“We have always believed that he is the best quarterback when it comes to giving us a chance to win,” Saleh said. He added the team turned to Boyle and Siemian to try to find a spark.
New York benched Wilson three weeks ago in a 32-6 loss to the Buffalo Bills. Boyle started the Jets’ last two games, but the team withdrew him after Sunday’s loss to the Atlanta Falcons after a second week of poor play and replaced him with the experienced Siemian.
Wilson said it had been a “challenging year” and he was looking forward to playing. He denied that he was hesitant to return as a starter, adding that he didn’t feel the need to discuss the issue with the team on Wednesday.
“I had support from day one. That’s why I love this team so much,” Wilson said. “I want to play for these guys. I would do anything for these boys.”
The Jets (4-8) have lost five straight games despite their offensive woes. New York has scored four offensive touchdowns in its last 88 drives and ranks 30th in season scoring. They have scored 10 offensive touchdowns, the fewest of any team in 12 games in the last 30 years – and just one in the two weeks since Wilson was on the bench.
The problems derailed a season that began with high expectations until star quarterback Aaron Rodgers tore his Achilles tendon four games into the team’s season opener. The Jets opened the 21-day practice window to Rodgers last week, but he said both his health and the Jets’ playoff chances were factors in a potential return from injury this season.
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Wilson, the No. 2 pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, returned to his previous role as the Jets’ starter following Rodgers’ injury. But just like previous seasons, the offense struggled and Boyle was named the starter for the Week 12 game against the Miami Dolphins.
Wilson is 3-6 as a starter this year, with six touchdowns, seven interceptions and 1,944 passing yards. The Jets’ offense has scored multiple touchdowns only once this season – in a 23-20 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs on Oct. 1.
Boyle completed 48 of 77 (62.3 percent) passes for 360 yards with one touchdown and four interceptions. Siemien completed 5 of 13 passes for 66 yards in Week 13, relieving Boyle.
Neither could get the offense going, which has struggled more than even with Wilson over the past two weeks. When Wilson was benched, the Jets had no plans to use him again this season. The offensive performance in a 13-8 loss to the Falcons changed things.
What to expect from Wilson
The last time the Jets turned to Wilson after benching him, things didn’t go well. Last year, the Jets turned back to Wilson after subbing him in for Mike White, who injured his ribs. Wilson started two games when he returned, but in the second game he was benched in favor of practice squad quarterback Chris Streveler, and it was felt that this was the last time Wilson would even get any significant snaps for the Jets .
Both Wilson and Saleh have admitted that he lost his confidence at this point last year – seeing teammates wearing Mike White jerseys after Wilson was subbed probably didn’t help – so it will be interesting to see , how Wilson deals with himself this time.
This is particularly true given The Athletic’s report that he did not want to play at all after being benched for Boyle and demoted to third string. It was odd that Saleh said Wilson gave the Jets the best chance to win all along. Given the Jets’ poor performance the last two weeks without him (47-21, 7-of-29 scoring on third-down conversions), it’s hard to argue with that point, but it’s also fair to wonder how Wilson would beat himself otherwise I don’t want to play at all. Ultimately, this is Wilson’s last chance to prove to other NFL teams that he is capable of contributing as a starter or even backup quarterback. — Zack Rosenblatt, Jets staff writer
(Photo: Brad Penner / USA Today)