New York Jets quarterback Zach Wilson was benched yet again as he continued to struggle, this time in the Jets 19-3 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars during Thursday night football at MetLife Stadium.
Wilson was heavily booed by the Jets fans for his horrendous performance completing only nine of 18 passes for 92 yards and an interception and a putrid 5.2 QBR that helped the Jets losing streak extend to four games and all but dashing their playoff hopes.
“Yeah, it’s [tough],” Wilson said of the crowd booing him, according to ESPN’s Rich Cimini. “I don’t blame them. We have a passionate fan base, and they’re here to watch us score touchdowns. We’re not scoring touchdowns, we’re not getting first downs, we’re not moving the ball and, obviously, we can’t throw the ball. Of course they’re going to be frustrated.”
Wilson, who was benched five weeks ago in favor of Mike White, was this time benched in favor of former practice squad quarterback Chris Streveler.
“We were trying to change up to get the run game going,” Jets head coach Robert Saleh said. “I know Zach was struggling. Streveler came in, he ran a couple of plays, sparked the offense and got the explosive play. It snowballed in a good way for Strev. So we wanted to give him an opportunity to finish the drive. By the time we got it back, we decided we’re already here, so let’s go with Strev.”
Joe Flacco backed up Streveler, but did not see game action.
“We had nothing there,” Wilson said of the Jets offense. “You can’t blame [Saleh] in that situation. He put Chris out there, and he’s obviously great with his legs and his arm, and he was able to give us a little spark there. You could see that was the most we moved the ball all day, so you can’t blame him.”
“Man, I don’t know,” Wilson said. “I just felt like I didn’t have any rhythm out there. [I was] just trying to find some confidence out there on the field, just find something to get us going — a little spark. I couldn’t get anything there, man.”
“Yeah, it’s tough and I’m working my way through it,” Wilson continued. “But I have to be optimistic here. I believe in myself, regardless if anyone else does.”
“We haven’t seen the last of him,” Saleh said of Wilson.
