The New York Jets have had catastrophic problems at the quarterback position over the years. They thought they had the answer with Aaron Rodgers, but even he couldn’t solve their problems, leading to the two sides to part ways this offseason.
That led the team to sign Justin Fields, a former Chicago Bear and Pittsburgh Steeler, to a two-year, $40 million deal.
However, the team could still select a quarterback with the seventh overall pick in the first round of the NFL draft to the detriment of Fields.
When asked about what his reaction would be to the Jets drafting a quarterback, Fields gave a vague but telling response to the question.
“Not really interested in rhetorical questions,” he said.
While it is hard to call a question a reporter asks an athlete a rhetorical question, this reaction does at least show Fields doesn’t like the question.
Naturally, he would view a draft pick as someone who could replace him as the starter, just as the Chicago Bears did with Fields when they selected Caleb Williams with the first overall pick in last year’s draft.
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The Steelers also brutally moved on from Fields and still haven’t even found his replacement, so it is understandable for Fields to be a little testy about the subject.
The other possibility that Fields could be annoyed with this kind of question is the fact he just arrived with the Jets and they brought him in to be the starter. It is entirely possible it was part of the contract that Fields was promised to be the starter.
Given what he has gone through during his career where he showed some signs of promise but was replaced before he could fully realize it, a promise to be the starting quarterback next season would be a great incentive for him to sign.
In terms of quarterbacks, the Jets could select, both Shedeur Sanders and Jaxon Dart seem like realistic options. Fields could serve as a temporary starter for the team given his short contract.
However, it wouldn’t be a typical mentor situation, as Fields is still just 26 years old. He has decent enough experience as a starting quarterback, but he is in a position to be fighting for a starting job, not help a young quarterback become a starter himself.
While the New York Jets may be in the market for a quarterback in the NFL draft, drafting one early would understandably upset Fields, which may or may not matter to the Jets as of now.