Looking Back At Sunday; Zach Wilson Had a Big Game – Enjoy the Win

Well, that was fun! The Jets scored 30 points in a football game for the first time since week five. The 30 points the Jets scored were more than the total (27) they had amassed in the previous three games combined. The best thing about the blowout win over Houston is that the Jets’ previous franchise quarterback, who was replaced as franchise quarterback by a future hall of famer, then pressed into service due to injury, then relieved of duty for poor play, played like we hoped he would when he was drafted. In the ultimate example of the week-to-week nature of the NFL, the Zachies (They’re kinda like ‘Swifties’ without the musical or football talent) came from all corners to rain down self-praising posts on social media as the game proved them correct in their assertion Zach should have never been benched. What?

Oh, what a difference a week makes. The Jets’ five-game losing streak, during which time they failed to score more than 13 points in any game and totaled just 45 total points, was snapped in grand fashion on Sunday. The Jets throttled Houston’s high-flying offense and blew the Texans out. The Jet defense allowed just 54 yards passing and just 135 total yards on the day. The defense also posted five sacks. It was a victory in all phases for the Jets, who needed one as badly as any team has needed a win this year. Zach Wilson was very good for two quarters (the Jets were shut out in the first half), and as mentioned, his stats were easily his best of the season. Wilson played well and made several impressive throws. Please forgive me if I am not convinced that he is the future of the franchise just yet.

The oddity of the Zachies’ take on the rare solid performance by Wilson is that it didn’t prove that head coach Robert Saleh was correct to have benched him. Instead, in the mind of the football-logic challenged, it proved Wilson never should have been benched. That couldn’t be further from the truth. The game on Sunday and Wilson’s performance was the direct result of the benching. Wilson got the wake-up call he so severely needed. Wilson was a different player Sunday after sitting on the sideline as Tim Boyle played his way out of the league. Nobody thought Tim Boyle would be Joe Namath, but the team badly needed a change. Zach Wilson had played like hot garbage for weeks. Saleh made the right move. Zachies are quick to point out that Wilson is the best active quarterback on the roster. I have no argument with that position.

The point remains, Zach Wilson may be the best active quarterback on the roster and still deserves to be benched due to his lousy play.

There are times when talented players need to sit down. If anything, Wilson’s benching was overdue. Many, including me, criticized Saleh for not pulling the trigger on a quarterback change weeks ago. Saleh’s mistake was not benching Wilson; it was waiting so long to do it. Several starting quarterbacks with statistics that were better than Zach Wilson’s had already been benched by their head coaches. The Jets waited longer than anyone else. The move was needed, it worked, and it changes the outlook for Sunday’s game.

With Wilson having played well against Houston, the Jets enter this week with renewed optimism. Zach has a spring in his step with some added confidence in his play. Because of the benching and the impact it has had on Wilson, there is reason to believe the Jets have a chance at an upset this week. If Wilson was allowed to continue to play as poorly as he was, the Jets would have finished the season on a ten-game losing streak. The depth of frustration that would accompany that much failure would have threatened team chemistry. I am not sure how this is all is not abundantly clear to even a casual fan.

Enjoy the win! Celebrate Zach Wilson’s performance. Celebrate the renewed optimism around Wilson possibly turning his career around. Celebrate equally the move by Coach Saleh to send Wilson to the bench. It’s the thing making us all feel much better heading to Miami.

Nick Ferraro

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