One year ago, on Thanksgiving week, Jets coach Robert Saleh cut Zach Wilson, benching the second-year quarterback for the first of two times last season, and replacing backup Mike White was used.
Wilson, the No. 2 overall pick in the 2021 draft, has once again been left out of the starting lineup, dropping to the third row on the power chart. On Monday, journeyman Tim Boyle was named the starter for the struggling team’s Black Friday away game. Dolphin.
The move feels more permanent for Wilson, whose career with the Jets appears to be coming to an end.
Wilson was scheduled to spend time learning from Aaron Rodgers this season, but the four-time league MVP suffered a torn Achilles tendon and was forced to be replaced in the first game of the season.
But with the offense operating at a historically weak level overall, it’s clear that the Jets have missed out badly on the two quarterbacks they acquired in recent years with top-three draft picks. Wilson will follow in the footsteps of his predecessor Sam Darnold as a high-end bust at the most important position in the sport.
Darnold started just 38 games in three seasons with the Jets before being traded to the Panthers in 2021 ahead of Wilson’s arrival, and is now Brock Purdy’s backup with the 49ers.
Purdy showed that draft status isn’t always an exact science. He was the last player drafted in 2022, beating out the team’s own No. 3 overall pick in the draft, Trey Lance (who was then traded to the Cowboys and served as the No. 3 QB).
Baker Mayfield, the No. 1 overall pick in Darnold’s 2018 draft class, also joins his fourth NFL team as a starter for the Buccaneers, who are already 4-6.
Incredibly, the 29-year-old Boyle, Rodgers’ former understudy with the Packers, becomes the 16th player to start at quarterback for the Jets in the past 15 seasons. He joins Mark Sanchez, Kellen Clemens, Greg McElroy, Geno Smith, Michael Vick, Ryan Fitzpatrick, Bryce Petty, Josh McCown, Darnold, Trevor Siemian, Luke Faulk, Joe Flacco, They follow a nearly indistinguishable list: Wilson, White, Rodgers.
As post-beat writer Brian Costello pointed out On the social media website formerly known as Twitter, the [the Jets’] What’s even crazier is that there were two other high-profile QBs who didn’t start during this period: Tim Tebow and Christian Hackenberg. ”
However, it is important to point out that the Jets are not alone in pursuing stability at the position. They still have a long way to go to match the Browns, who have used a whopping 25 starting QBs during this period.
Still, the 24-year-old Wilson hasn’t taken advantage of his latest opportunity without Rodgers. From what we’ve seen so far, it’s now almost impossible to imagine him developing into the long-term answer the franchise has been waiting for. His 31-year career began.
But that doesn’t mean all of this falls on Wilson’s shoulders. He will be asked to perform behind an injury-plagued offensive line that has used six different starting configurations over the past six games.
But the offensive numbers this season have been shockingly poor, with just nine offensive touchdown drives in 10 games and the worst red zone and third-down efficiency in the NFL in decades.
Before being replaced by Boyle late in the third quarter of Sunday’s 32-6 loss to the Bills, Wilson was 7-for-15 for 81 yards and zero success to wide receivers. The Jets have lost three in a row and fallen to the last place in the playoff race with 4 wins and 6 losses with seven games remaining. The former BYU star’s QBR of 30.7 ranks 30th out of 31 successful applicants this season.
Asked about Wilson’s future with the Jets, Saleh said Monday, “We’ll deal with it in the offseason.”
The move to the unproven Boyle, who has three touchdowns and nine interceptions in 18 career NFL games, including three starts with the Lions in 2021, shows how much Saleh’s confidence in Wilson has waned. It shows.
Saleh also announced that Siemian would be promoted from the practice squad to be Boyle’s backup against the Dolphins, putting Wilson under even more pressure organizationally.
Today’s back page
voting venue
As a voting member of the Baseball Writers Association of America for the past 17 years, I always look forward to the day Hall of Fame ballots are mailed to voters.
It was Monday, so I’m looking forward to the envelope arriving in my mailbox later this week.
We haven’t distributed official ballots yet, so here are some early thoughts.
• Among first-time players, Adrian Beltre should be a big name with 477 home runs, 3,166 hits, and five Gold Gloves, and Joe Mauer will also get plenty of support (.306 career batting average). , won three batting titles as a catcher) in his first year.
-After adding double-play partner Jimmy Rollins to the list a year ago, I’m also considering checking off longtime Mets nemesis Chase Utley, but David Wright’s career was shortened by injury, so he’s off the table for me. do not have. (José Reyes and Bartolo Colon, another pair with strong ties to the Mets, will also appear on the ballot for the first time.)
Five of the 10 maximum spots are open this year because Scott Rolen won last year and Jeff Kent, who would have voted every year if eligible, was removed from the ballot, but he doesn’t necessarily intend to use them. Not all selections available.
• The two returning players who received the most votes a year ago and are most likely to be on the stage in Cooperstown next summer are Todd Helton (72.2 percent last year) and Billy Wagner (68.1 percent). . Both were fairly close to the 75 percent standard required for enshrinement.
I also voted for Andrew Jones and Gary Sheffield last year. After Sheffield reaches 55% of the vote in 2023, he will need to win an additional 20% in his 10th and final year of eligibility.
• Some may disagree, but stars Alex Rodriguez (35.7 percent) and Manny Ramirez (33.2 percent) should not have much of a chance this year after being suspended for PEDs.
• As for another former Mets All-Star, it will be interesting to see how much Carlos Beltran’s numbers improve from his starting performance of 46.5 percent a year ago. Many people ignored him over his involvement in the Astros’ sign-stealing scandal.
my own shark week
I’ve been in the industry for over 30 years and have traveled many times to cover sporting events. Marriott Bonvoy’s status (titanium for life!) is proof of that.
But last week’s trek to Denver was a much more personal experience. I was flying out to watch my newly recruited college soccer team, the Long Island University Sharks, compete in his Division I NCAA men’s tournament.
My son, Tyler, is a first-year assistant coach at LIU after spending several seasons at Molloy College, including the Division II tournament in his first year as the school’s head coach in 2021. This includes going on an expedition.
The experience of being there for this game was good, even though I lost 2-1 to the University of Denver in the second half on Thursday and was on a bleary-eyed flight back to JFK instead of the second-round game against SMU in Dallas the next morning. worth it. (Colorado Avalanche defenseman Jack Johnson also addressed the team the night before the game.)
There is still one Long Island school left in the Big Dance. Hofstra University, the student-athlete and former Pride captain’s alma mater, will play No. 3 North Carolina in Chapel Hill this weekend after defeating Yale 2-0 in Hempstead on Sunday. .
Scoreboard: Minnie so-so version
Timberwolves 117, Knicks 100: The Knicks (8-6) settled for a 3-2 road trip after faltering in the second half. Jalen Brunson scored 25 points and Julius Randle had 21 points and 14 rebounds. Quentin Grimes returned to action but was scoreless. Anthony Edwards (23 points) replaced him in the third quarter and the Troubles led by just two points at halftime. One trend to note is that the Knicks are currently 1-5 against teams with winning records.
6 stars, Ranger 3: In Dallas, the Rangers suffered their first regulation loss since October 19, ending an 11-game winning streak. The Rangers held a 2-0 lead on goals from Vincent Trocheck and Kaapo Kakko, but it crumbled.
Eagles 21, Chiefs 17: In this Super Bowl rematch on “Monday Night Football,” brother Jason Kelce and the Eagles improved to 9-1. They shut out the Chiefs (7-3) in the second half, coming back from a 10-point deficit at halftime. In the fourth quarter, as Kansas City looked to extend its lead to 17-14, Travis Kelce fumbled in the red zone and Marquez Valdez fumbled in the lead zone. -Scantling dropped the game-winning 51-yard touchdown in the final minutes. Taylor Swift and his parents weren’t there.
What we’re reading 👀
🏈 The Post’s Paul Schwartz explores the Giants’ pressing question: Why is Brian Daboll so dull behind the microphone?
🏀 The Knicks have upped the stakes (over $10 million!) and upped their anti-Adam Silver rhetoric in the latest explosive development in the corporate espionage case against the Raptors.
⚾ The highly anticipated Mets and Yankees will start bidding for valuable Japanese right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto, probably around $200 million.
⛳Fore! The Tiger Woods vs. Rory McIlroy indoor virtual golf league has been postponed for a year after a roof cave-in.
⚽ Furious over Sergiño Dest’s senseless red card Despite losing 2-1 against Trinidad and Tobago, the U.S. men’s national team advanced to the Concacaf Nations League semifinals on aggregate.
⚽ No Alex Morgan or Crystal Dunn. new look For the U.S. women’s national team.
💪 Big changes in the MMA world.
