New York Jets general manager Darren Mougey confirmed unsurprising news when he told reporters at the NFL owners meetings on Sunday that recently signed quarterback Justin Fields will be the starter over backup Tyrod Taylor.
Some within the league seemingly disagree with the Jets’ handling of their quarterback situation.
“The 35-year-old Taylor is among the most respected players within the Jets locker room (or any locker room that he’s in),” NFL insider Connor Hughes of SNY revealed for a piece published Sunday night. “He received captaincy votes as Aaron Rodgers’ backup a year ago. There are some around the NFL, familiar with both players, who believe that Taylor is the better of the two.”
While Taylor is a journeyman who wouldn’t be a first-choice starter for a majority of teams at this stage of his career, Fields is a 26-year-old with just four NFL seasons on his resume. On paper, Fields should have the higher ceiling of the two. With that said, it’s worth noting that both the Chicago Bears and Pittsburgh Steelers elected against paying Fields like a long-term answer at the position.
Most recently, the Steelers benched Fields in favor of a healthy Russell Wilson after the former went 4-2 as a starter. Pittsburgh later let both Fields and Wilson find new football homes as free agents.
It’s no secret the Jets can escape the two-year, $40M deal with $30M guaranteed they gave Fields as soon as next offseason if he fails to play like a legitimate QB1 during the fall. Additionally, some who cover the team think the Jets could make either Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders or Ole Miss’ Jaxson Dart the seventh overall pick of the 2025 draft depending on how the player-selection process plays out on April 24.
“He has a quiet confidence about himself,” Jets head coach Aaron Glenn told NFL Media’s Judy Battista (h/t Christian Gonzales) while speaking about Fields. “He can really throw the deep ball really, really well. Obviously, his legs are something that’s dynamic, not just in college but the NFL, as well. I just think he’s ready to break out as a top-notch quarterback. So, he’s going to do everything he can to be one of the better ones and we are going to coach our asses off to make sure he does a good job out there.”
The Atlanta Falcons showed last year that a team can give a Week 1 starter (Kirk Cousins) millions of dollars in guaranteed money and then spend a first-round draft choice on an advertised project for the future (Michael Penix Jr.) who ultimately enters the lineup before the end of his rookie season. Assuming it’s true that some in the NFL think Taylor is the best quarterback on the Jets roster, Mougey may have to at least consider grabbing Sanders or Dart on the final Thursday of April.
Leave a Reply