There may be no team in football quite as adept at placing their foot in their mouth as the New York Jets. It has spanned coaches, general managers, and generations. As a new administration takes power, headlined by head coach Aaron Glenn and general manager Darren Mougey, they'll hope to avoid verbal disaster and back it up with on-field results.
Owner Woody Johnson may have put a dent in those plans.
The biggest move of New York's offseason was releasing quarterback Aaron Rodgers, putting an official end to the last era of East Rutherford football. His replacement, quarterback Justin Fields, signed a two-year, $40 million deal that was met with measured optimism.
However, the Jets lost when Johnson called Fields a "winner" at the annual league meetings; not because of Fields' talent but because of an oversight the internet was happy to run with.
"I think Justin Fields is going to be a total winner for us," Johnson said as transcribed by Antwan Staley. "I've been impressed with him since his college days. It was he or Trevor Lawrence, and I think he is going to be really good."
Fields was among the five quarterbacks drafted in the 2021 NFL Draft. First was Lawrence to the Jacksonville Jaguars. New York had the second pick and it was … decidedly not between Lawrence and Fields.
The Jets, of course, picked Zach Wilson, who endured three turbulent seasons before his departure.
In that span, Fields was similarly inconsistent, proving to be a bit more viable than Wilson because of his mobility. He, too, found a new team after 2023, traded from the Chicago Bears to the Pittsburgh Steelers for a conditional Day 3 pick.
Johnson's optimism isn't unfounded. Fields is certainly toolsy, and he showed in 2024 that he could play winning football – at least in spurts. He went 4-2 in six starts with the Steelers before being benched for Russell Wilson, who has since signed with the New York Giants.
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Fields didn't encroach on the sky-high potential he flashed at Ohio State during his time with Pittsburgh, but he limited turnovers and played fringe-average football. If he can do that for the Jets, it would help establish a brand of competency that the regime is looking for.
He'll have two years to prove himself, signing a deal that grants New York flexibility if he falls short and surplus value if he hits. If nothing else, Fields will almost certainly fare better than the quarterback Johnson forgot about.
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This story was originally published April 2, 2025 at 8:01 PM.