Jets to start Joe Flacco, not Zach Wilson, vs. Dolphins

Zach Wilson won't be making his return to the Jets, as SNY's Ralph Vacchiano confirmed Joe Flacco, the veteran quarterback New York traded for a few weeks back, will be getting the start against the Miami Dolphins this week.

Wilson still isn't completely healthy, as he's been recovering from a sprained PCL. 

“Zach is obviously still dealing with his knee," head coach Robert Saleh said Wednesday. "He’s getting a lot better, he’s still going to practice. He’s just limited.

"No setback. It's still the same. It's not 100 percent."

Saleh added that one of the main reasons Flacco was brought back to the Jets was because of his experience in situations like this one that Miami will give them. The Dolphins showed a blitz-heavy scheme on defense against the Baltimore Ravens that worked in their upset Thursday Night Football win last week. So the call to go with Flacco over Wilson, especially coming off an injury and not seeing game reps in awhile, came into play. 

"Miami’s got a dynamic coverage system as it pertains to defense with zero and all the coverages they run," Saleh explained. "Joe’s kinda been there, done that and kinda a steadying experience that we feel puts us in the best position to win.”

It is worth noting, as The New York Daily News' DJ Bien-Aime pointed out, Flacco went 21-for-44 with one interception and no touchdowns with a passer rating of 50 when he faced Miami last year. And that came from a defense blitzing him 48.9 percent of the time. 

Of course, the Jets have a slightly better team now. But this is also Flacco's first start since Week 11 of last year. 

Flacco got some play this past Sunday for the first time with New York after Mike White flopped with four interceptions. Flacco only recorded three pass attempts but completed from all for 47 yards and a touchdown. 

And speaking of White, it did sound like Saleh was going to give him another shot after that poor performance against Buffalo after saying this: "He was anointed the next coming after one game, and now everyone wants to throw him away. He deserves better than that."

Saleh walked back a bit on Wednesday, saying he was talking about people wanting White out of New York. He'll be backing up Flacco on Sunday.

The 36-year-old Flacco last started in the NFL during Week 11 of the 2020 campaign against the Los Angeles Chargers, where he took the loss going 15-for-30 for two touchdowns and one interception. He went 0-4 with the Jets when he got the start last season. 

Also worth nothing: If Wilson can't make it back and Flacco does end up needing to make more starts, the Eagles would get a fifth-round pick instead of a sixth-rounder if he plays more than 50 percent of snaps in four games. This, presumably, would be one of those fours.

But Saleh said starting Flacco has nothing to do with GM Joe Douglas sending away a draft pick.

"No, it's a fair question but be real: You can get a sixth-round pick back by trading one spot in the third. It was a really good opportunity to get a veteran quarterback in this building at a cost that's not hard to recoup," Saleh said.

Wilson could return against the Houston Texans next week, but that's still to be determined.