For the third time in two seasons, Zach Wilson was benched by the Jets, but he’ll still remain part of their active roster Friday — just with a special designation.
Wilson will join starting quarterback Tim Boyle and backup Trevor Siemian as active against the Dolphins at MetLife Stadium despite his demotion to third-string quarterback, though he’ll hold the emergency third quarterback label and won’t be eligible to appear in the game unless Boyle and Siemian both get injured.
Even if Boyle or Siemian are benched, Wilson can’t enter the game.
The Jets won’t have to keep another player inactive for games just to keep Wilson on the active roster.
The league passed the emergency third quarterback rule for this season.
Head coach Robert Saleh said Monday that the Jets planned to keep Wilson active since “we have an extra roster spot,” though he also revealed Siemian would serve as the first option behind Boyle.
The change at quarterback occurred after the Jets dropped to 4-6 following a loss to the Bills in which Boyle replaced Wilson late in the third quarter.
Boyle represents a “different style of quarterback,” Saleh said, and he became the latest shift — along with tweaks to the running back, tight end and wide receiver rooms, in addition to offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett calling plays from the booth Sunday — to try to spark an offense with just one touchdown in November.
“Zach’s fine,” Saleh said when asked how Wilson accepted the news. “He’s come a long way from a year ago, and I think we all agree we wish it was better. Obviously, we wish it was better for him. We wish we all could’ve been better for him.”
Wilson was benched last November after a 10-3 debacle against the Patriots after which he took no responsibility for the offensive struggles.
He got his job back when Mike White was hurt, but was benched a second time in favor of Chris Streveler.
“And again, it’s like I’ve said, it’s not a one-person thing,” Saleh said, “but just to see if we can get something going.”
