How did we get to Jets' Elijah Moore asking to be traded?

Thursday marked the tipping point for Jets receiver Elijah Moore.

Labeled a budding star before the season, Moore hasn’t made much of an impact with the 4-2 Jets. He has just 16 catches (sixth on team) for 203 yards (fifth) and zero touchdowns. In the Jets’ 27-10 victory over the Packers on Sunday, he saw just one target — and it was negated via a penalty.

So now Moore has asked the Jets to trade him — a request they vehemently denied, sources told SNY.

But how, exactly, did we get here?

Moore’s frustration with the Jets has been brewing for a while, according to sources. The 22-year-old, whom the Jets drafted out of Ole Miss in the second round last year, entered this season believing it to be his breakout. Through the first three weeks, though, he caught just 12 passes for 139 yards. Joe Flacco, filling in for the then-injured Zach Wilson, targeted him 21 times. Moore just was never able to enjoy the level of success he had envisioned.

While Moore wasn’t happy he hadn’t experienced the same successes as Corey Davis (19 catches, 351 yards, two touchdowns) and Garrett Wilson (24 catches, 290 yards, two touchdowns), the return of Zach Wilson against the Steelers made him optimistic his time was coming. Moore, who developed impressive chemistry with the young quarterback throughout training camp, saw Wilson as the key to igniting his season. His ability to extend plays would afford Moore more opportunities to attack the defense.

That hasn’t happened. Instead, Moore’s production dropped.

Moore caught just three passes for 53 yards against the Steelers, one pass for 11 against the Dolphins, then went catch-less against Green Bay. Wilson threw his way four times against both Pittsburgh and Miami, then none against the Packers (one was negated via a penalty). Flacco never targeted Moore fewer than five times in his three starts.

Despite the Jets winning all three of those games, Moore first expressed his displeasure to teammates after the Packers game, questioning his future in New York. He then sent a string of critical posts on social media. That was believed to be just heat-of-the-moment, but it trickled into this week.

Moore had an “uncharacteristic outburst” before practice on Thursday that surprised teammates and angered coaches, sources said. This led to a discussion with both offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur and head coach Robert Saleh. The three decided it would be best if Moore left the facility for a personal day. The thought was that Moore would spend time with his family and calm down. The three would reconvene on Friday to figure out how best to get Moore going.

Instead, Moore requested a trade. The Jets have absolutely no plans to grant that request — unless a team blows them away with an offer. They made that clear to both Moore and his agent Tory Dandy. The Jets want to exhaust all measures to mend the relationship with a player they still believe has elite-level potential.

The real question: How?

The puzzling aspect regarding Moore’s dissatisfaction is that the Jets haven’t changed the way they’re using him. Moore caught 43 passes for 538 yards and five touchdowns last season (including 34 for 349 yards and five touchdowns Weeks 7-12 last year before suffering a season-ending quad injury). He played 347 of his snaps split wide and just 125 in the slot. This year, Moore has played 275 snaps outside and just 68 in the slot.

He’s playing the same position now as he did then, running the same routes. The biggest reason for his target drop — which is why it’s a little puzzling Moore requested a trade — is that the Jets have (successfully) turned to the ground game for success. It’s not that they’re not targeting him — they’re not targeting anyone. They’ve won three straight and four of their last five with the ground-and-pound philosophy.

Wilson threw just 21 passes (completing 14) against the Dolphins. He threw just 18 passes (completing 10) against the Packers. Davis and Garrett Wilson led all Jets receivers in targets against the Dolphins with four. Davis led all receivers with another four targets against Green Bay. Meanwhile, running backs Breece Hall (318 total yards, two touchdowns) and Michael Carter (80 yards, two touchdowns) have been dynamic.

The Jets are doing what it takes to win, and winning as a result.

It’s hard to justify rocking the boat when it’s been smooth sailing.

There’s been no indication to this point that Moore plans on making himself so disruptive that he forces the Jets’ hand. The Jets are also confident that if he did go that route, their leaders in the locker room (Laken Tomlinson, C.J. Mosley, Davis) would nip it in the bud before it becomes a full-blown distraction.

But there’s no denying this is the last thing the Jets need right now. They’re two games over .500, readying for winnable games against the Broncos and Patriots over the next two weeks, and know one more victory before the Week 10 bye positions them perfectly for a playoff push to close the year.

So what are they going to do with Moore?

They need to figure that out quick.