For one reason or another, the New York Jets waited until two weeks following Aaron Rodgers’ season-ending injury to bring in a veteran quarterback. This was with Zach Wilson floundering after having taken over the starting role on short notice.
But, Jets general manager Joe Douglas finally made the decision to bring in a veteran quarterback. The Jets signed Trevor Siemian to the team’s practice squad on Tuesday, and he made his practice debut at the team’s facility in Florham Park, NJ, on Wednesday.
It’s tough to say why the Jets waited so long to bring in another quarterback not named Tim Boyle, but the addition of Siemian puts a little pressure on Wilson, who has been dreadful in three games (two starts) this season, to play better. While Wilson is the more talented quarterback, a veteran presence like Siemian could provide some stability to the league’s worst offense, something that Mike White and Joe Flacco did a season before.
Speaking with reporters on Wednesday, Siemain was asked about the pressure of playing in New York (he started one game for the Jets in 2019 before suffering a season-ending ankle injury).
“I think Zach gets it,” Siemian when asked if he could do anything to alleviate some of the mounting pressure on the young quarterback. “He knows, I think, that there’s no pressure like the pressure you put on yourself. Zach’s wired the right way it seems. I’m still getting to know him. I don’t think anything about that. I think Zach is doing a good job.”
"Zach gets it, there's no pressure like the pressure you put on yourself. He's wired the right way, it seems."
Trevor Siemian on Zach Wilson: pic.twitter.com/JwVVqfg5QZ
— Jets Videos (@snyjets) September 27, 2023
It remains to be seen how quickly the Jets will pull the plug on the Wilson experiment—yet again—as it’s more than likely his struggles will continue against the defending Super Bowl champions on Sunday night. Siemian will be inactive this week and indicated that no promises were given to him about his role, but a lot can change quickly with Wilson continuing to play like he did last week.
