A splash of Mike White might be what keeps the Jets in the playoff picture
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- on Jan 08, 2023
It’s Mike White time for the Jets. His dominant performance against the Bears may not be a weekly occurrence – Chicago’s defense was without several starters – but it’s a monumental improvement over the woeful Zach Wilson.
White, who stands 6-foot-5 and has a monstrous arm, is 메이저사이트 more of the traditional drop-back passer that head coach Robert Saleh is familiar with dating back to his time with Jimmy Garappolo in San Francisco.
“He made the easy look easy,” Saleh told reporters after White went 22-of-28 for 315 yards and three touchdowns.
New York amassed 466 yards of total offense Sunday and White recorded a splendid 149.3 passer rating, the highest output by a Jets quarterback since Geno Smith’s perfect 158.3 eight years ago.
Easy doesn’t come easy in the NFL, so it’s a telling statement from Saleh when we consider how bad Wilson has been and the idea that White will make the throws he’s supposed to make and be in the places he’s supposed to be. Quarterbacks’ Houdini acts can drive defenses mad and make for eye-popping highlights, but there’s also a benefit to knowing where your quarterback will be.
“Zach is kind of a freewheeler out there,” an opposing defensive starter told me. “He’s going to make some plays, but he’s going to make a lot of mistakes. You just have to wait as a defense, and he’ll give you the ball eventually. I’m not comparing the two because I think Zach’s more talented and still young, but that was how we defended Brock Osweiler after he got paid. Just keep the pressure going and he’ll give you the ball.”
White, to his credit, isn’t a statue back there like Joe Flacco despite being of similar stature. He can move a little bit.
White – a 2018 fifth-rounder from pass-happy Western Kentucky – also led the week in EPA per dropback (0.65), per TruMedia, and averaged 11.25 yards per attempt. More importantly, he was lethal on third downs, going 8-of-11 for 119 yards and two touchdowns.
“He was a smooth operator,” running back Ty Johnson said, according to ESPN’s Rich Cimini. “He was just doing Mike White things.”
The injury status of running back Michael Carter will be important for White on Sunday. He is already one of the best receiving backs in football and a clear-cut safety valve for White. A source told me essentially that Carter – who sustained a lower ankle sprain Sunday and did not return – is currently up in the air for a Week 13 meeting with the first-place Vikings.