Sunday may have been the end of the Zach Wilson era once and for all in New York. Down 29-6 late in the third quarter, the Jets pulled Wilson in favor of backup quarterback Tim Boyle. Wilson went 7/15 for 81 yards with a touchdown and an interception, was sacked five times and had a quarterback rating of 57.9.
Boyle finished 7/14 for 33 yards and an interception. The Jets now have a major decision to make and a short time to do so with their next game being on Friday.
Last year following a 10-3 Week 11 loss to the New England Patriots — a game in which Wilson went 9/22 for 77 yards and was sacked four times — Wilson took little to no accountability for his performance, saying he wasn’t letting the team down.
This time, following another ugly Week 11 loss, Wilson has done a much better job of taking the high road and putting himself at the forefront of the blame.
“It’s all about accountability,” Wilson said after the game Sunday. “And it starts with me. I’m not getting it done.”
Wilson understandably was frustrated at the decision to bench him, a decision that seemed to be brewing for weeks and could have even happened during the Raiders game in Week 10, but said he understands why he was benched.
“Frustrated, but I get it,” Wilson said. “Have to score, have to be in games. When it’s consecutive games of just doing nothing on offense, you know you can sit here and say last week we moved the ball, but we’re not scoring. It essentially comes down to you have to score. So when things aren’t getting done, change has to be made, and I understand that.”
Zach Wilson said he’s frustrated but understands why he was benched. #Jets pic.twitter.com/wd86CVeApI
— Zack Rosenblatt (@ZackBlatt) November 20, 2023
The maturity level of Wilson is miles ahead of where he was last year at this time, but the results still aren’t and the Jets have finally reached the ultimate crossroads with the former No. 2 overall pick.
Of course, not all the blame is on Wilson. He is a problem but he is not the problem. The entire offense is broken. The offensive line can’t stay healthy, running backs have almost no room to run, receivers are dropping passes. Sunday was all that and then some.
The Jets at least scored a touchdown, not only in the red zone, but in general. They had gone 12 quarters without finding the end zone. However, third-down woes continue to haunt the Jets. An 0/11 day on third down dropped New York to under 23% for the season. That is, by far, the worst in the NFL and on pace to be the worst ever.
The Jets sit two games out of a playoff spot after Sunday. Not scoring points makes it very difficult to win games and thus even a two-game deficit seems almost insurmountable at this point, especially with the Miami Dolphins coming to town on Friday.
Whatever the plan is, it’s unlikely to involve Wilson going forward. The Jets held on to this offensive plan too long and it will likely cost them the season.
