Jets HC Robert Saleh reveals status of team's starting QB

New York Jets head coach Robert Saleh made it known Tuesday he's not benching struggling quarterback Zach Wilson coming off the club's 27-6 home loss to the Los Angeles Chargers on Monday night.

"It would be one thing if it was just him," Saleh said about Wilson while speaking with reporters on Tuesday, as shared by Josh Alper of Pro Football Talk. "It is the easy thing to do, him and the play-caller are the two most visible things so when things aren’t good it’s easy to blame them. It’s easy to blame the people who are most visible to the camera. ... If it was just him, that would be worth discussing but this is a collective issue."

Hall of Famer Troy Aikman made similar comments during the ESPN broadcast of Monday's game. 

"Anyone who has anything to do with this offense, coaches included, they’ve got to look at themselves in the mirror," Aikman said about the Jets at that time. 

While Aikman and Saleh are right about Wilson not being the only thing wrong with the Jets offense this fall, ESPN stats show the 24-year-old is ranked 31st in the NFL among qualified players with a 32.3 adjusted QBR and 30th with a 75.4 passer rating on the season. 

With Wilson playing in place of the injured Aaron Rodgers, the 4-4 Jets ended Week 9 ranked 31st with an average of 272.9 offensive yards per game. 

Unlike last November when Saleh benched Wilson, Mike White is no longer with the Jets to potentially save the day. Saleh seemingly believes neither backup Tim Boyle nor practice squad option Trevor Siemian is an upgrade over Wilson ahead of this coming Sunday's primetime contest at the 4-5 Las Vegas Raiders, but the coach may have to change his mind as soon as next Monday if only to prevent a mutiny among his players. 

As for Rodgers, he suggested earlier on Tuesday he won't return from the torn Achilles he suffered in Week 1 before New York plays three more games this month. The Jets may decide to shut Rodgers down until springtime workouts if they enter December at 5-6 or 4-7.