The intersection of the third preseason game and the final preseason game has indeed caused different teams to take different approaches as to the players who play in the Week Three games.
For the Jets, coach Robert Saleh decided to keep quarterback Zach Wilson and most other offensive starters out of the fray on Friday night against the Eagles.
“From the offensive side of the ball, when you look at all the different things that was happening on the offensive line with Mekhi [Becton] being out and just shuffling people around, it just wasn’t worth it to bring [Wilson] out and just we felt like we had a productive training camp with regards to what we’ve seen in games,” Saleh told reporters after the game. “Obviously, with the practices that we had with Philadelphia, we just felt like we got enough accomplished and we really wanted to give the younger guys a look to give them a chance to etch their spot in the roster on stone.”
Saleh said that the weather, which delayed the start of the game, wasn’t a factor, and that the decision to sit Wilson had already been made.
Wilson looked very good in his two games of preseason work. He’s made a great impression both outside and inside the building; Saleh recently said Wilson is “light years ahead of normal rookies” when it comes to preparation and study.
Wilson makes his official NFL debut at Carolina in Week One, as New York’s current quarterback of the future faces its most recent quarterback of the future in Sam Darnold.