New York Jets fans, get your paper bags ready because the 2023 Jets are going up in flames. On Sunday in Buffalo, the Jets lost their third straight game by a final score of 32-6 and there is no close end in sight.
Today let’s take a look at the biggest issues and headlines heading into a week 12 matchup against the Miami Dolphins.
Biggest Issues and Headlines with the Jets
Tim Boyle To Start At QB, Zach Wilson Benched
Things have reached a boiling point in Florham Park. This Friday at MetLife Stadium, Tim Boyle will be under center against the Dolphins. Robert Saleh and the Jets coaching staff finally benched third-year quarterback, Zach Wilson. The problem is, it is most likely too little too late for the Jets as they have now fallen to 4-6 on the season.
The handling of the quarterback situation after Aaron Rodgers went down four plays into the season has been nothing sort of incompetence from the organization. Wilson, throughout the year, showed minimal to no progress even during the previous three-game win streak. And yet the Jets kept rolling him out every Sunday. Sound familiar? Well, it should, because last year the same situation occurred.
Wilson’s time as a Jet is over. He has now been benched for Mike White, Chris Streveler, and Tim Boyle. The highest draft pick of those three is White, who was selected in the fifth round of the 2018 NFL Draft by the Dallas Cowboys. Streveler and Boyle went undrafted. This isn’t necessarily good company for Zach Wilson.
The question many Jets fans are asking themselves this week is what will Boyle do? The most realistic answer to this is probably not much. In Boyle’s 18 career appearances, he has thrown three touchdowns and nine interceptions. However, the Jets offense is statistically one of the worst offenses in NFL history and the NFL was founded in 1920, so it can’t get much worse. It doesn’t mean it will get much better though.
Coaching and Front Office Concerns
The blame game is in full effect at One Jets Drive as fans are figuring out who the problem is off the field. The simple answer is everyone, from Robert Saleh to Nathaniel Hackett, and GM Joe Douglas, deserve plenty of blame. Let’s start at the top and work down the list.
While Joe Douglas has done some good things since taking over as Jets GM in 2020, this season he deserves a lot of blame. When Aaron Rodgers went down he chose to sit around and give the ball to Zach Wilson without making any trades. Also, many were calling for Douglas to sign a veteran backup in the offseason and he didn’t. He was the main reason Zach Wilson was playing into November for another year. Douglas also did nothing at the deadline to improve a receiving core and offensive line that still needs serious help. His free-agent signings don’t help his case either.
Moving onto head coach Robert Saleh who is currently on his way to losing the locker room for the second straight season. While Saleh is not all to blame, the post-bye week struggles over the last two seasons are an issue. Last season the Jets went into the bye week 6-3 and finished 7-10, ending the season on a six-game losing streak. This season it’s the same issues, the Jets went into the bye week 3-3, and they now stand at 4-6. Saleh has talked a lot about handling adversity, but the unfortunate reality is as head coach he has not handled adversity well.
Finally, Nathaniel Hackett also deserves blame for the putrid offense the Jets have put on the field through 10 games this season. Hackett’s play calling throughout the season has been very vanilla and boring. He also hasn’t called plays that work toward Wilson’s strengths. One thing Wilson can do is run and he has a cannon of an arm, you’d never know though because Hackett never really gave Wilson a chance to air the ball out and use his legs.
Offensive Line
Coming into the season the offensive line was a concern and most likely leaving this season the offensive line will remain a concern. A big reason for that has been injuries to starters and depth pieces.
Going into next season the Jets could be trotting out three new offensive linemen in front of Aaron Rodgers. The two most likely players to return next season are Joe Tippmann and Alijah-Vera Tucker. Other key pieces such as Laken Tomlinson and Mekhi Becton could be back but their futures are more unknown.
If it is only Vera-Tucker and Tippmann who return next season as the starters the Jets have a lot of work to do. Whether it is via the draft, trades, or free agency the Jets need to figure out the offensive line because it’s been a thorn in the organization’s side for a while.
Results-Driven Business
At the end of the day, the NFL just like every other major sports league is a results-driven business. Whether or not you want a change at the most prominent positions head coach or general manager, the records of both speak for themselves.
Since taking over as Jets GM, Joe Douglas has a 24-52 record and is on his way to his fifth losing season in his fifth year as GM. To add on, Saleh’s record of 15-29 since taking over as head coach in 2021 isn’t any better.
Wins and losses are what ultimately matter most when judging coaches, and staring at another year of no playoffs change needs to be made somewhere. Heading towards 13 years straight, of no postseason football, the organization continues to search for answers.
Main Image: Jamie Germano/Rochester Democrat and Chronicle / USA TODAY NETWORK
