Maybe the decision was rigged by the New York Jets. Maybe it was just a remarkable coincidence of timing and the health of quarterback Mike White’s ribs. Or maybe Zach Wilson responded appropriately to his first NFL benching and had some of the best practices of his life the last two weeks.
The reasons don’t really matter. Because Friday’s decision by the Jets — putting Wilson back into the starting lineup — was baked into this situation the very second he went to the bench. Head coach Robert Saleh telegraphed the move repeatedly because he knows what everyone else inside the organization knows: An important offseason decision has to be made at quarterback.