Justin Fields‘ time as the Jets starting quarterback appears to be over.
Gang Green will start Tyrod Taylor in Week 12 at Baltimore, sources confirmed to the Daily News. The news that Taylor would start this weekend was first reported by The Athletic.
Taylor will be starting against the Ravens, who selected him in the sixth round of the 2011 NFL Draft.
Fields’ benching isn’t a surprise to anyone after Jets coach Aaron Glenn said on Friday that he was “evaluating everything” following the team’s 27-13 loss to the Patriots on Thursday. Fields finished 15-of-26 with 116 yards with a touchdown and a lost fumble against New England. He registered only 23 passing yards in the first half against the Patriots.
During his past five starts, Fields has 505 yards, three touchdowns, and one interception. The Jets are dead last in passing yards per game this season (139.9) and are on pace to be the lowest passing average since the 2022 Bears, for whom Fields was also the starting quarterback.
The Jets signed Fields to a two-year, $40 million contract in March, hoping he could be the next quarterback to revitalize his career after failed stops with the Bears and Steelers. However, the Jets will likely be searching for a new quarterback in 2026, either through the draft, trade, or free agency.
Fields, 26, is scheduled to make $20 million in 2026, including $10 million guaranteed. The Jets could release Fields with a June 1 designation and save $10 million and have a dead money cap hit of $13 million.
Sunday will mark Taylor’s second start of the season. After Fields suffered a concussion in Week 2 against the Bills, Taylor started the next week, a 29-27 loss against the Buccaneers and threw for 197 yards with two touchdowns and one interception.
At 2-8, the Jets are almost sure to miss the playoffs for the 15th consecutive year. After trading both Sauce Gardner and Quinnen Williams earlier this month, the team gained three additional first-round picks in 2026 and 2027 and a second-round pick in 2026.
But Glenn is trying to win games to finish this season with positive momentum, which is why the move to Taylor needed to happen. Fields has been hesitant to throw the ball downfield and has instead thrown checkdown passes to his receivers. That’s why Fields was benched at halftime during the loss against the Panthers in Week 7.
Taylor, 36, is a much more polished passer who is willing to stretch defenses and give his receivers a chance for explosive plays downfield. That’s why Glenn was rumored to be leaning towards starting Taylor in Week 8 against the Bengals. But Taylor injured his knee against Carolina and missed the game against Cincinnati, and Fields continued to be the team’s starting quarterback.
Fields had his best game in a Jets uniform against the Bengals. He finished 21-of-32 with 244 yards and a touchdown, which helped the Jets get their first victory of the season. This came days after Jets owner Woody Johnson criticized Fields for the team’s then 0-7 start to the season.
After their bye, Fields followed up his performance against the Bengals with another lackluster game, this time against the Browns. He threw for just 54 yards with one touchdown and an interception in the 27-20 win against Cleveland. The Jets won despite Fields’ performance, thanks to two special teams return touchdowns by Kene Nwangwu and Isaiah Williams.
