The Jets and Justin Fields posted an all-time putrid passing performance in Sunday’s loss to the Broncos in London, as this new era of Gang Green football hit a new low abroad.
New York finished with -10 net passing yards, as Fields threw for just 45 yards while taking nine sacks that lost the offense 55 yards. It was the worst finish in franchise history and the worst by any team in 30 years.
At first glance of the box score, it would be fair to assume that Fields was running for his life from the Broncos pass rush, and that his offensive line failed him by being completely overwhelmed at the point of attack. That was not always the case. In several of the sacks Fields took during the ugly 13-11 loss, Fields seemed to hold on to the ball for way too long, with advanced stats showing that he took sacks well after the league average in terms of time from the snap of the football.
The offense looked putrid with Fields under center, yet first-year head coach Aaron Glenn adamantly shut down the idea of benching his quarterback despite the team’s 0-6 start, with many of those losses including an ineffective Fields leading the way.
“What kind of question is that?” Glenn said when asked if there was any thought to benching Fields in favor of Tyrod Taylor given how ineffective the offense was on Sunday morning. “There are guys that have bad games. That doesn't mean you just bench them. Come on, you know better than that.”
The question seemed more than fair considering this wasn’t just a bad game for Fields. It was historically pitiful, and comes after two other teams, including the typically putrid Bears, gave up on the 26-year-old. Mike Tomlin caught some heat with the Steelers last season for sticking with the aging Russell Wilson at the end of the season, and his group took Aaron Rodgers off New York’s hands during the offseason. Now, Rodgers and Tomlin appear well on their way to an AFC North title.
Given how Fields’ career has gone so far, how this Jets season has gone so far, and how Sunday’s ugly performance went, questions about Fields’ job security seem more than fair. Given Glenn’s response, and the state of this Jets team right now, questions about Glenn’s job security are starting to seem more relevant as well.