The New York Jets learned their lesson the hard way last season when they bet all their chips on Aaron Rodgers without having any real plan if their new franchise QB got hurt.
Obviously everyone knows how that ended up.
The Jets looked like they’d be a very solid contender before the season began and many believed they could contend for a Super Bowl. But, just four plays into the season, starting quarterback Aaron Rodgers went down with a season-ending Achilles injury.
The New York Jets never really recovered from that, and both Wilson and Tim Boyle tried to lead the team the rest of the way. Wilson, who was the former No. 2 overall pick, went 4-7 as a starter. He threw for 2,271 yards and had eight touchdowns and seven interceptions. He has one year left on his initial four-year deal, but the Jets are widely expected to trade or cut him.
Team owner Woody Johnson didn’t hold back his frustrations with the team’s lack of having a backup plan when he spoke publicly about the offensive woes at the NFL Honors earlier this month.
“The discussions I’ve had in the last couple of months, they’ve seen me about as mad as I can be with what was going on, with the offense particularly,” Johnson reportedly said, via ESPN.
“We have all this talent, and we have to deploy talent properly. So I think they all got the message. This is it. This is the time to go. We’ve got to produce this year.”
According to the report, when asked specifically by reporters about the team’s need for a backup, Johnson agreed.
“You need a backup quarterback,” he said. “We didn’t have one last year.”
Wilson, the No. 3 overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, has faced mounting criticism throughout his NFL career. After another disastrous season, the Jets moved forward last year to acquire four-time league MVP Aaron Rodgers in an offseason trade with the Green Bay Packers.
With that, the Jets moved from trying to make the playoffs for the first time since 2010 to talking about Super Bowl aspirations. But just four plays into Rodgers’ debut, he suffered a season-ending leg injury, and the Jets were back at square one.
New York Jets Insider Reveals Team Interested In Washington QB Sam Howell As Potential Backup In 2024 And Aaron Rodgers Successor
While it’s abundantly clear the Jets need to have a clear plan in place for a reliable backup QB for Rodgers in 2024 — and there have been some wild ideas thrown around already — NFL Insider Connor Hughes recently addressed one that may make a ton of sense.
In his weekly mailbag, Hughes was asked if there’s any interest in the Jets potentially trading for Washington Commanders QB Sam Howell, who could be a reliable backup if Rodgers gets hurt in 2024, while learning from one of the best QBs to play the game with the hopes he would eventually take over for Rodgers when he decides to hang it up.
This is an outside-the-box approach for the New York Jets to backup Aaron Rodgers in 2024, but Hughes not only didn’t just shut it down, he made it known there are several people within the building who are high on Howell’s potential.
“I love the idea of this, assuming he’s available. The Commanders could easily keep him as the backup. It’s not like this is a Sam Darnold, Justin Fields situation. If available, though, I’d prioritize him over anyone else.
Howell proved this year he can play. There are flaws to his game, but none where the season is lost if he has to play. He’s also cheaper. Howell would have a cap hit under $1 million each of the next two years — that matters to Woody Johnson and the Jets. There are those in the Jets building who believe he can play, too. Maybe two years learning behind Rodgers really unlocks his potential and he ends up being his replacement. He did throw for 3,946 yards and 21 touchdowns on a terrible Commanders team.
The key will simply be compensation. The Jets should do this if all it takes is a pick on the third day of the draft. Howell is just as good of an insurance policy as Gardner Minshew or Jacoby Brissett.”