All week, Aaron Glenn has kept his starting quarterback against the Bengals confidential.
On Friday, Glenn continued playing this game, declining to reveal whether Justin Fields or Tyrod Taylor would start at Cincinnati.
“I cannot tell you that,” Glenn said when asked who his starter would be for Sunday’s game.
When the same reporter followed up by asking whether it was because he didn’t want to, Glenn responded, “That’s exactly it.”
Fields was benched at halftime last Sunday after another inept performance during the loss against Carolina. He completed 6-of-12 passes for 46 yards before Taylor replaced him in the second half. Taylor wasn’t much better. He finished the game 10-for-22 with 126 yards and two interceptions.
On Monday, Glenn told reporters that he would seek advice from his staff and others who had been in a similar situation before he made a decision.
Jets owner Woody Johnson, while speaking at the NFL Fall Meetings in Manhattan on Tuesday, blamed the Jets’ 0-7 start on Fields’ performance.
When asked on Wednesday who would start against the Bengals, Glenn said he didn’t want to give Cincinnati a “competitive advantage.” Both Fields and Taylor said they do not know who will start this week.
What further complicates the matter is that Taylor is dealing with an injury himself. He has a knee injury after a helmet struck him in the leg against the Panthers and has been limited this week. He will be listed as questionable. However, Glenn says he likes the way he’s trending.
Glenn was also asked if Taylor’s injury situation is playing a role in his decision.
“That’s exactly why I’m not telling you, because I don’t want to,” Glenn said. “That’s exactly why I’m saying it, because I don’t want to. I don’t know how many times I got to answer you that. It’s not going to change.”
SAUCE AND WILSON OUT VS. BENGALS
The Jets will be without two of their stars on Sunday in Cincinnati.
Both Sauce Gardner and Garrett Wilson will not play against the Bengals.
Gardner suffered a head injury during the second half of last weekend’s loss to the Panthers and has been in concussion protocol all week. Wilson injured his knee two weeks ago in the Jets loss to the Broncos in London. He also missed last week’s game against the Panthers, which was the first game Wilson has missed since being drafted by the Jets in 2022.
Gardner and Wilson both being out is a massive blow to the Jets’ chances of getting their first victory of 2025. Gardner has been arguably the team’s best defense player, and Wilson has been one of the few bright spots to an offense that hasn’t found the end zone in two weeks.
Glenn says rookie Azareye’h Thomas will start for Gardner opposite Brandon Stephens this week.
“[I] like his progression as far as getting in the games,” Glenn said. “They’ve always been in the situation where if somebody gets hurt, he has to go in there and he has to play.
“I thought he’s done a pretty good job of that, of being ready when called upon to be able to go play. I’m excited about how he’s going to progress and how he’s going to continue to progress, and he’s going to be a key cog to what we do as he continues his years of playing.”
Thomas and Stephens will face a tall task of trying to contain the Bengals’ dynamic duo of receivers in Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins.
“I treat every week the same,” Stephens said. “It don’t matter who I’m going up against. It is any given Sunday.
“It doesn’t matter who the receiver is, you gotta prepare for them the same way. It is the most important game because it’s the next game. So this is the one I’m most excited for.”
Running back and kick returner Kene Nwangwu (concussion), defensive tackle Jay Tufele, linebacker Cam Jones (hip) and tight end Stone Smart (quad) will also miss Sunday’s game against the Bengals.
