Joe Benigno was on one of his classic Jets tirades, lamenting the state of the franchise with Zach Wilson as the starting quarterback, and it led to Tiki leaving the studio.
Joe and Tiki were debating how the 49ers dumped their former No. 3 overall pick in Trey Lance, and Joe wanted the Jets to do the same with Wilson, the No. 2 pick in the same draft.
“They dumped their No. 1 draft choice because they knew he couldn’t play,” Joe said. “And my team continues to trot out this stiff, Tiki.”
“They knew that Brock Purdy was better,” Tiki replied, but Joe kept going, shifting his frustration to being convinced that Tiki relished in Gang Green’s failures.
“You hate the Jets, you would love to see the Jets go 2-15. Stop it,” Joe said. “You’re a Giant. If this was the situation with the Giants, you would be screaming to get Wilson the hell out of there.”
Tiki, who has been praising the Jets new offensive coordinator since he was brought in after last season, took exception to that.
“I love Nate Hackett,” Tiki said. “First of all, I never scream, because I watch and I analyze, and I try to find reasons why things happen.”
Joe didn’t want to hear that any analyzing would reveal anything other than his belief that Wilson is a bust.
“Yesterday, you were in Washington with the Commanders and Bills, were you not?” Joe said. “So don’t give me this nonsense how you’re analyzing Zach Wilson. I don’t want to hear it. It’s BS, Tiki. He stinks. He stinks!”
With that, Tiki had enough.
“Alright Joe, sounds good. I’m turning my mic off buddy,” Tiki said, before calmly taking out his earbuds and leaving the studio.
Clearly, the Zach Wilson discourse has reached a level where friendships are now being impacted.
