Joe Flacco will be starting at quarterback for the Jets against the Ravens this Sunday and he’ll be starting all of their September games as long as he remains healthy enough to play.
Shortly after word that Flacco will get the nod for Week One broke, Jets head coach Robert Saleh said in a press conference that Wilson will not be available until Week 4 at the earliest. Wilson is recovering from having meniscus surgery after injuring his knee in the team’s first preseason game.
Wilson will not go on injured reserve because the Jets want him to practice in the coming weeks.
The timeline is a major change from what Saleh and the Jets have been saying recently. All word from the team was that Wilson had a chance of playing in the opener, but it appears that was just misdirection from the team about their plans.
After hosting the Ravens, the Jets travel to Cleveland and return home to face the Bengals in Week Three. They face the Steelers on the road in Week Four, so Flacco could get a long walk down his AFC North memory lane if Wilson remains out into October.
The Jets have maintained that Wilson will be the team’s quarterback as soon as he’s healthy enough to play, but an extended absence opens the door to the possibility of the team playing well enough under Flacco that some might argue against rocking the boat. While that would be a good thing for the Jets in the standings, it wouldn’t be the ideal way for Wilson’s second NFL season to unfold.