While there’s still no word on who will be starting at quarterback for the New York Jets on Sunday, one name can be eliminated from the list of options: Tim Boyle.
The Jets apparently saw enough from Tim Boyle in two bad starts. And only two days after Boyle taking the field for the Jets in their 13-8 loss to the Atlanta Falcons, the team released the journeyman quarterback. In a subsequent move, the Jets signed Brett Rypien off the Seattle Seahawks practice squad.
Rypien, 27, is just another quarterback with some game experience, but certainly not a long-term option. He has appeared in 10 NFL games over four seasons with the Denver Broncos and the Los Angeles Rams, and has completed 58.3 percent of his passes, with four TD passes and nine interceptions.
Boyle, 29, was playing for his fourth team in five NFL seasons and had previously backed up Aaron Rodgers in Green Bay. With the Jets, he appeared in the last three games, starting the final two. Against the Falcons, he completed 14-of-25 passes for 148 yards and could only led the Jets offense to a pair of field goals.
Another journeyman QB, Trevor Siemian, replaced Tim Boyle after he threw an interception late in the third quarter — a play that ends up being Boyle’s final one with the Jets, who have now lost five straight games.
The previous week against the Miami Dolphins, he was 27-of-38 passing for 179 yards and a touchdown, but he threw two interceptions, one of which was returned 97 yards on the final play of the first half.
Siemian was even worse than Boyle, completing only five of 13 passes for 66 yards and was sacked three times, leading to a costly lost fumble in Falcons’ territory with 2:52 left in the game.
If Tim Boyle is out, is Zach Wilson back in?
New York Jets head coach Robert Saleh has yet to name his starting quarterback for Sunday’s home game against the Houston Texans.
But before releasing Tim Boyle, there were reports that Saleh wanted Zach Wilson to return as the starter in what would be a battle between two quarterbacks who were selected second overall in the NFL draft — Wilson and Houston’s C.J. Stroud.
But Wilson reportedly snubbed the Jets’ request to regain his starting role, which he assumed when Aaron Rodgers suffered an Achilles tendon tear only four plays in the first game of the season.
The much-maligned Wilson proved incapable of leading the Jets’ offense, which ranks 31st overall. He completed 59.2 percent of his passes for 1,944 yards with only six TD passes to go with seven interceptions, and his QB rating of 73.8, which places him 33rd among NFL starting quarterbacks. He was benched in favor of Tim Boyle during a 32-6 loss to the Buffalo Bills on Nov. 19 and hasn’t returned to the field since.
Still, as a sad commentary on the Jets’ quarterback situation, the Jets apparently still view Wilson as the best available — and healthy — option for now, and they are “hoping he will change his mind.”
Could Aaron Rodgers still save the Jets?
Wilson, or whoever the Jets decide to play at quarterback, would merely be keeping the position warm for Aaron Rodgers, whether he returns this season or waits until next season to make his comeback.
Related: 5 questions about Aaron Rodgers’ 21-day practice window
Rodgers, who just turned 40, has begun practicing with the Jets, who have until Dec. 20 to decide whether or not to activate him. Rodgers has said his health and the Jets’ playoff hopes will be the two biggest factors in his decision-making process.
And with the latter becoming less of a possibility each week, don’t bet on seeing Rodgers take the field for the Jets until 2024.