FLORHAM PARK, N.J. — Justin Fields’ first season with the New York Jets — and perhaps his last — is officially over.
The former quarterback was placed on injured reserve on Tuesday, a shameful cap for a disappointing season.
Fields, who was benched Nov. 17, has been bothered in recent weeks by what the team described as “soreness” in the knee. He returned to training last week, but told reporters that he was still not healthy enough to play. He has been inactive the past three games.
“Man, we tried to see how we could make this work, but things didn’t go as well as we would like,” coach Aaron Glenn said. “So, we want to make sure we focus on that to make sure we get better.”
In all likelihood, Fields wouldn’t have played anyway.
He reported soreness two weeks after being benched and has not played since. He was replaced by Tyrod Taylor, who was injured in his third start. That led the Jets (3-12) to sign undrafted rookie Brady Cook, who will make his third start Sunday against the New England Patriots at MetLife Stadium.
There’s a good chance the Jets will break away from the fields in the off-season.
The former Chicago Bears first-round pick signed a two-year, $40 million contract in free agency and was named the starter this offseason, but he did not live up to modest expectations.
Fields went 2-7 as a starter, ranking 28th out of 32 qualifying passers in total QBR (37.3) — below his career mark (45.3). He has passed for just 505 yards in his past five starts, prompting Glenn to bench him.
Glenn declined to comment on whether Fields would need surgery. He also did not address Fields’ future, saying he is focused on New England.
“Any player who doesn’t have the season we want to have is always disappointing,” Glenn said. “I don’t want to focus just on Justin with this – I know that’s the question – but any player that we have high hopes for and the season doesn’t go the way we want it to, we’re always disappointed by that.”
Fields is scheduled to count $23 million toward the 2026 cap, including $20 million in salary ($10 million guaranteed). There would be $22 million in dead money if the Jets cut him, which could stretch out over two years if it’s classified as a cut after June 1.
The Jets may opt for a complete reset at quarterback, which could mean adding a veteran and rookie.
Fields raised eyebrows Nov. 26 when she responded to a question about whether he would be open to a small set of plays as a Wildcat quarterback — a way to take advantage of his speed. Fields said there had been discussions about using him in the role, but told reporters he had “mixed feelings” about it.
He said he wanted to be a team player but expressed concern about the possibility of injury, saying he would be vulnerable to soft tissue injuries from going into a cold game. “I’m still not necessarily as healthy as I want to be right now,” he noted. He suffered a knee injury for a week in October. It didn’t cost him any training time.
Fields, 26, missed Week 3 with a concussion but returned to start the next seven games. Glenn was prepared to bench him in Week 8 — the same week owner Woody Johnson publicly criticized Fields — but the coach stayed with him because Taylor was out with a knee injury that flared up late in the week.
Fields responded with his best game of the season, throwing for 244 yards in a comeback win over the Cincinnati Bengals, but it was downhill from there.