Moving on from Justin Fields?

Edition #949: Sitting at 0-6 we've officially reached the point where we need to at least start considering how to dig ourselves out of this hole.

Good Morning ☕

I didn’t really want to write this piece because on a personal level I was desperate for the Justin Fields experiment to work out…but six weeks into the season it’s looking increasingly likely that Fields is not the answer to the long-term issue of ‘Who will be the Jets starting QB?’.

A part of me still hopes that what we’re seeing is growing pains, but in truth that’s probably naive. Chicago moved on from Justin Fields their first round pick after three years, Mike Tomlin and the Pittsburgh Steelers gave up on him after just 6 games, turning to Russell Wilson who was just benched by the Giants.

We’re going to explore the Justin Fields question today.

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NEWS & NOTES

• Aaron Glenn wasn’t ready to rule out Garrett Wilson for this weekends game saying “We’ll see how he progresses”. It would be a huge shock if Wilson who suffered an injury against Denver were to suit up against Carolina.

• Garrett wasn’t the only one sidelines yesterday. Josh Reynolds, Cam Jones and Qwan’tez Stiggers were all absent to start the week.

• Woody Johnson may need to have a word with Glenn about the way he conducts press conferences because honestly, it’s just a bad look at the moment. He comes across extremely combative and arrogant and when you’re sitting at 0-6, you haven’t got a lot to be arrogant about. He was asked about Justin Fields not pushing the ball down the field, which is another legitimate question: “That’s for any quarterback, especially when you have man coverage to give a guy a chance. But I do know, if something bad happens, you guys are going to be bitching about that, about him.”

• Aaron Glenn continued to express his confidence in Breece Hall, shooting down trade rumours stating he hadn’t changed his mind since the off-season. You’ll probably remember that in the off-season Glenn made it a priority to assure Hall that he wasn’t being traded. Hall was then asked to explain his “free20” message on Instagram: “It’s referencing like being in the moment, being in the game. I’m ready for whatever.” and when asked if it was a distraction he said “You think I wake up thinking about getting traded?”

• Fields was asked about the Denver loss yesterday and he shouldered the blame: “Of course, super-frustrated, the defense played a hell of a game, the offense, we came up short, and me personally, I did. It’s no secret. I didn’t play well, and that’s what it is. It’s just getting back on track.”

• Fields also appreciates that he needs to be more aggressive: “The ball is very important to us as an offense. But some of those risks you can take can turn into explosive plays. It’s just a matter of finding a happy medium. Everybody’s going to throw picks — it’s just a part of playing quarterback. I look at myself this past game and over the course of the season and say I can be a little more aggressive.”

• Jeremy Fowler believes that the 49ers could call the Jets to ask about the availability of Will McDonald or Jermaine Johnson. In that same piece Dan Graziano asks whether Quincy Williams could be heading to the Bay: “If the Jets are dealing players, as most people seem to expect they will, could linebacker Quincy Williams (who’s playing on the final year of his contract) make sense for San Francisco?” If you’re not going to re-sign Quincy it makes sense to get something for him.

• Fowler states: “The Jets will be a focus for teams looking to poach key players at the trade deadline, most notably pass rushers McDonald and Johnson. New York wanted to get back from London before making any sweeping determinations of whether to move players. My sense is the Jets would prefer more modest moves (think corner Michael Carter II), but much will depend on the type of offers New York receives for key players.”

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Can the Jets cut Justin Fields after 2025?