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Less than a full week after New York Jets owner Woody Johnson dumped Justin Fields and head coach Aaron Glenn refused to name a starting quarterback for a “competitive advantage,” the Week 8 decision has been made without much choice.
Fields has struggled since signing a two-year, $40 million deal with Gang Green — to the point where he was benched at halftime for veteran Tyrod Taylor in their Week 7 loss to the Carolina Panthers.
However, Taylor suffered a knee injury in that game that will cause him to miss Sunday’s game against the Cincinnati Bengals, leaving the Jets no choice but to start Fields.
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Justin Fields and Aaron Glenn of the New York Jets stand on the sidelines during the national anthem prior to an NFL football game against the Miami Dolphins at Hard Rock Stadium on September 29, 2025 in Miami Gardens, Florida. (Logan Bowles/Getty Images)
Johnson expressed his disappointment in Fields during the NFL owners meetings earlier this week.
“It’s tough when you have a quarterback with the rating we have,” he said. “He’s got the skills, but there’s something that doesn’t jive. If you look at any head coach with a quarterback like that, you’re going to see similar results across the league. You’ve got to play consistently at that position, and that’s what we’re going to try to do the rest of the season.”
New York Jets owner Woody Johnson walks onto the football field prior to an NFL game against the San Francisco 49ers at Levi’s Stadium on September 9, 2024 in Santa Clara, California. (Brooke Sutton/Getty Images)
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Fields has started six games with the Jets and will miss Week 3 because he was in the concussion protocol. He has compiled a passer rating of 91.1 this season.
Reports indicated that the Jets planned to move on Taylor as several people on the Jets believed he was the better quarterback.
As recently as Friday, Glenn refused to name a quarterback because he simply “didn’t want to” in a heated back-and-forth with the media. He added that the players knew who the quarterback would be.
New York Jets head coach Aaron Glenn looks on during an NFL football game against the Denver Broncos on Sunday, Oct. 12, 2025, in London. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)
Garrett Wilson and Sauce Gardner will also miss the contest as the Jets look to avoid an 0-8 start.
