-
Rich Cimini
Florham Park, NJ — Justin FieldsFirst season with New York Jets – and, possibly, his last – is officially over.
The former starting quarterback was placed on injured reserve on Tuesday, capping a disappointing season.
Fields, who was benched on November 17, has been troubled in recent weeks with what the team described as “soreness” in the knee. He returned to practice last week but told reporters he was still not healthy enough to play. He was inactive for the last three matches.
“Man, we tried to see how we could make it work, but it wasn’t going as well as we wanted,” coach Aaron Glenn said. “So, we want to make sure we focus on that to make sure we can make him better.”
In all likelihood Fields would not have played anyway.
He complained of pain after two weeks on the bench and has not played since. were replaced tyrod taylorJoe got injured in his third start. It led the Jets (3-12) to land an undrafted rookie brady cookwho will make his third start on Sunday against new England Patriots At MetLife Stadium.
There’s a good chance the Jets will part ways with Fields in the offseason.
East Chicago Bears The first-round pick signed a two-year, $40 million contract in free agency and was named the starter in the offseason, but he fell short of modest expectations.
Fields went 2-7 as a starter, ranking 28th out of 32 qualified passers in total QBR (37.3) – below his career mark (45.3). He only managed 505 yards passing in his last five starts, forcing Glenn to bench him.
Glenn declined to comment on whether Fields would need surgery. He also wouldn’t talk about Fields’ future, saying he’s focused on New England.
“It’s always disappointing if any player doesn’t have the season we want for them,” Glenn said. “I don’t want to just focus on Justin with this – and I know that’s the question that’s been asked – but any player that we have high expectations for and the season doesn’t go the way we want it to go, we’re always disappointed with that.”
Fields is scheduled to hit $23 million on the 2026 cap hit, including $20 million in salary ($10 million guaranteed). If the Jets cut him there would be $22 million in additional money, which could be spread over two years if he is designated as cuts after June 1.
The Jets could opt for a complete reset at quarterback, which could mean adding a veteran and a rookie.
Fields raised eyebrows in response to a question on November 26 whether he would be willing to commit to a shorter package of plays as the Wildcat quarterback – a way to capitalize on his speed. Fields said there had been discussions about using him in that role, but told reporters he had “mixed feelings” about it.
He said he wanted to be a team player but expressed concern about the potential for injury, saying that going into a cold game would put him at risk for soft tissue injuries. He added that he is “still not as healthy as I want to be right now.” He was listed out for a week in October with a knee injury; This did not cause him to waste any time in practicing.
The 26-year-old Fields missed the third week due to injury but returned to start the next seven games. Glenn was ready to put him on the bench in Week 8 – the same week owner Woody Johnson publicly criticized Fields – but the coach stuck with him because Taylor was out due to a knee injury that aggravated over the weekend.
Fields responded with his best game of the season, throwing for 244 yards. cincinnati bengalsBut it was downhill from there.
