The 7-7 New York Jets have a pivotal Week 16 matchup against the Jacksonville Jaguars on Thursday night as they attempt to keep pace in the playoff race. However, the Jets will be without quarterback Mike White once again as he missed Sunday's loss to the Detroit Lions with a ribs injury. Jets head coach Robert Saleh told reporters Tuesday that Zach Wilson will get the start in place of White once again in Week 16. Saleh noted that White wasn't cleared by doctors since he fractured his ribs nine days ago.
White suffered the injury in the Week 14 loss to the Buffalo Bills. It was thought he could suit up for Week 15, but he was not cleared by team doctors. The same is now true for Week 16 since the Jets are playing on Thursday.
"There are a lot of hurdles for him left to go through," Saleh said.
Wilson returned to the Jets' starting lineup Sunday for the first time since being benched following Week 11. He completed 18-of-35 passes for 317 yards, two touchdowns and one interception in the 20-17 loss. Saleh told reporters Monday the "kid is going to be a good QB," adding that people in "this instant-coffee world" want to see immediate results, per ESPN. Since White can't go, Wilson gets another chance to try and win back the full-time starting quarterback job for Gang Green -- setting up a matchup between the top two picks in the 2021 NFL Draft when Wilson takes on Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence.
The Jaguars and Jets have been going in opposite directions. Lawrence and Co. have won four out of their last six games, while the Jets have lost five of seven. The second-year quarterback has been one of the key factors in the Jacksonville turnaround. He's thrown 14 touchdowns and only one interception since Week 9, the NFL's best touchdown-to-interception ration in that span among quarterbacks with at least 150 pass attempts. The Jaguars have plenty of playoff-related motivation this week as well, as they are now just one game back from the flailing Tennessee Titans in the AFC South.
