FLORHAM PARK, N.J. — Aaron Glenn knows who the New York Jets’ starting quarterback will be at Cincinnati. But the coach, still looking for his first victory, isn't revealing his plan.
“We'll have a quarterback on Sunday,” Glenn said Wednesday. “I will tell you that.”
Justin Fields was benched after another dismal performance last Sunday and Tyrod Taylor played the second half of New York's 13-6 loss to Carolina.
Glenn said Monday he would deliberate over his decision, a process that would include speaking to his staff and even talking to other coaches who have dealt with quarterback quandaries. He also said his call would come down to who he thought gives the Jets the best chance to win Sunday against the Bengals.
And he doesn't want Cincinnati to know who that might be.
“I wouldn't want to give them a competitive advantage when I have that opportunity,” Glenn said. “But we have a quarterback.”
Adding to the ambiguity of the situation, Glenn said Taylor is among several Jets players who'll be day to day at practice this week. Taylor is dealing with a knee ailment — “It's something that he had before,” Glenn said.
Taylor had arthroscopic knee surgery during training camp and didn't play in the preseason. He has been healthy since returning ahead of Week 1. Taylor was on the field for warmups with Fields and rookie Brady Cook during the portion of practice open to the media.
It appeared likely the Jets would turn to Taylor this week because of Fields' recent struggles — and particularly after owner Woody Johnson told reporters at the NFL's annual fall owners meeting that the Jets' 0-7 start was largely because of the poor play at quarterback by Fields.
“He has the ability, but something just is not jiving,” Johnson said. “The offense is just not clicking. And you can’t run the ball if you can’t pass the ball. That’s Football 101.”
Fields was 6 of 12 for 46 yards in the first two quarters against the Panthers. That performance came a week after he was just 9 of 17 for 45 yards and sacked nine times in the Jets’ 13-11 loss to Denver in London, when New York had a franchise-worst minus-10 net yards passing.
Johnson made it clear he wasn’t happy with Fields, but insisted he would not influence Glenn’s decision.
“That’s completely up to the coach,” Johnson said. “I’m not going to be involved at all in any of that. This is what they’re paid to do, and this is what they’re experts at doing and so they’ll make the right decision — with what we’ve got.”
On Wednesday, Glenn pushed back at the narrative that Johnson clearly would prefer Taylor to play over Fields.
“What makes you say that? Did he say that?” Glenn asked a reporter.
When told that Johnson was critical of Fields and said he had trouble completing passes, Glenn bristled again.
“Does that say he doesn’t like the quarterback?" Glenn said. "Does that say that this quarterback is not playing?”
Glenn was then asked how Johnson's comments might have impacted his final call.
“Woody puts that in my hands as far as who plays and I don't see that changing," Glenn said. "He trusts me to make that decision. He made a comment and he has every right to his comment. That comment was actually said by a number of guys, including our quarterback, as far as the efficiency of how we play. ...
“But I don’t think there’s anywhere in that comment where he said he doesn’t like Justin.”
Last week, Glenn defended Fields by saying the quarterback took “a step back” against Denver, but attributed that to several factors. He said Fields made mistakes and didn’t get the ball out fast enough on some plays, but added that play calling, poor pass protection and receivers not getting open were also culprits.
Fields said last week he needed to get better and also expected to be “more aggressive” by taking more shots downfield, starting with the game against Carolina. Instead, it was more of the same struggles for Fields and the NFL’s worst-ranked offense.
Trying to spark things, Glenn decided to bench Fields at halftime. Taylor went 10 of 22 for 126 yards and two interceptions in Fields’ place.
Injuries
Glenn said cornerback Sauce Gardner and running back Kene Nwangwu are in the concussion protocol and their availability for the game at Cincinnati is uncertain. Cornerback Michael Carter II cleared the protocol and is ready to go after missing three games.
Linebacker Quincy Williams was designated to return from injured reserve as he recovers from a shoulder injury.
Glenn said wide receiver Garrett Wilson, running back Breece Hall, tight end Stone Smartt, defensive tackle Jay Tufele, linebacker Cam Jones and cornerback Qwan'tez Stiggers would be day to day with injuries and evaluated through the week.
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