Another week means another turn of the carousel under center for the Jets. This one is an exciting turn.
Mike White -- America's backup quarterback -- is back in action. Jets coach Robert Saleh told reporters White will start Sunday against the Bills, while recently acquired veteran Joe Flacco will be his backup.
White has captivated Jets fans and a significant portion of the greater NFL since he began filling in for rookie Zach Wilson, and it might not end simply because Wilson -- who is "trending in the right direction" but will not be healthy enough to play in Week 10 -- ends up returning from his knee injury. If White continues to ball, Saleh won't have to make the call.
"I think it's going to happen organically," Saleh said of the Jets' plan under center beyond Week 10, via SNY's Ralph Vacchiano. "If Mike does phenomenally, like we think he's going to do, that's not weird, it's awesome."
White instantly gained a place in Jets lore by starting in place of the injured Wilson in Week 8 and leading a frantic comeback victory over the previously red-hot Cincinnati Bengals. All eyes were trained on Indianapolis, site of White's next football escapade on Thursday Night Football.
Instead, White's hype train was quickly forced off the tracks when the quarterback suffered a forearm injury that knocked him out of the remainder of the game versus the Colts. Veteran backup Josh Johnson performed valiantly in White's place, but it was ultimately not enough to earn the Jets a second-straight upset win.
Johnson will not be White's backup in Week 10 because the Jets have already elevated him from the practice squad too many times, Saleh said. Flacco will get his first chance to prove the Jets' trade for him was worth their time spent filling out paperwork, dressing for the Jets for the first time in 2021 and ready to enter the game in case of emergency.
White, meanwhile, will look to pick up where he left off prior to getting dinged in Indianapolis.
