The Jets’ quarterback puzzle will remain unsolved — at least publicly — going into the weekend.
Head coach Aaron Glenn declined to name a starter between Justin Fields and Tyrod Taylor for the third time this week on Friday.
Glenn instead opted for secrecy and clinged to what he previously described as a competitive advantage heading into the 0-7 Jets’ matchup with the Bengals on Sunday.
He fielded question after question about it during his news conference, from whether Taylor could start physically to whether this has impacted the Jets’ preparation for the game Sunday, and Glenn successfully dodged each one.
“That’s exactly why I’m saying it: because I don’t want to,” Glenn said after the fifth quarterback question. “I don’t know how many times I gotta answer that. It’s not gonna change.”
Taylor, who has been a limited participant the last two days due to a knee injury, will once again be limited Friday and will officially be listed as questionable.
When asked if the players know about the decision. Glenn said he’d keep that between him and the players. When asked if starters have gotten normal reps, Glenn said that’s between him and his Gang Green players.
“We had a great week of practice with our guys,” Glenn said, when asked if this has impacted the Jets’ preparation at all. “Our guys know, we’re gonna keep that between us and that’s how it’s gonna be.”
It is now conceivable — with this being Glenn’s last media session before the game — that the starter may not be known till pregame warmups, unless the news leaks out.
Fields was benched at halftime during their loss to the Panthers on Sunday, and then owner Woody Johnson blasted his signal-caller’s play during a session with reporters at the NFL owners meetings — saying it’s “hard when you have a quarterback with the rating that we’ve got.”
“If we could just complete a pass, it would look good,” Johnson said. “You have to convince them that you can do something, otherwise it’s hard to have a game that you can win. … You can’t run the ball if you can’t pass the ball. That’s Football 101.”
Glenn ruled out cornerback Sauce Garnder (concussion) and wide receiver Garrett Wilson (knee) for Sunday’s game. Azareye’h Thomas will start in Gardner’s place.
