Jets vs. Cowboys NFL Week 2: With Zach Wilson at QB, Jets favored as Sunday’s lowest-scoring team
The New York Jets are officially Zach Wilson’s team again as the former No. 2 overall pick will return to the starting quarterback role with Aaron Rodgers officially ruled out for the season today when an MRI revealed the four-time MVP did indeed tear his Achilles tendon in Monday’s win over Buffalo. With Wilson under center, the #TakeFlight are now +700 favorites to be the lowest-scoring team of any playing Sunday in Week 2 as they visit the #DallasCowboys and have an over-under total of just 14.5 points.
Rodgers’ injury is a huge loss for the league and its TV partners as Bills-Jets was ESPN’s most-watched Monday Night Football game ever as it averaged a record 22.6 million viewers across ABC, ESPN and ESPN2. That was largely because of Rodgers, who now must decide if he wants to go through all the grueling rehab to return next season. Rodgers signed a fully guaranteed two-year, $75 million deal in July. He turns 40 in December and is 25 TDs shy of 500 career passing touchdowns.
In relief of Rodgers on Monday, Wilson completed 14-of-21 passes for 140 yards with one touchdown and one interception in leading the team to 16 of its 22 points (last six on the walk-off punt return TD). Most of his throws were at or behind the line of scrimmage.
Expect very low Jets team totals going forward as Wilson is 8-14 as a starter with a rating of just 70.9 and had the NFL’s worst passer rating in the league in both 2021 & 2022. He is the only QB since the 1970 NFL-AFL merger to finish last in the NFL in passer rating in back-to-back seasons.
(Note that the Jets have four more primetime games on their schedule, plus to mention a national TV spot on Black Friday. They might get flexed out of a few of those primetime games.)
Coach Robert Saleh said the Jets will look into quarterbacks to add to the team, but not one who would challenge Wilson for the starting job: “I want to make it very clear, Zach’s our quarterback. We have a lot of faith in Zach. We’re rolling with Zach and excited for him. Under no circumstances is any of this a competition.”
One offshore book has a prop active on which QB the Jets might add and former Eagles Super Bowl MVP Nick Foles, a free agent, is the favorite. From 2016-2019, Jets QB Joe Douglas was the Eagles' vice president of player personnel so he has ties to Foles and Carson Wentz, also a free agent.
The Jets are now up to 9.5-point underdogs for Sunday against the Cowboys – it opened at -3 – and the total has plummeted from as high as 46 to 39.5 because of Rodgers. Wilson is 1-6 against the NFC in his career with that lone victory in 2022 against Rodgers and the Packers.
Dallas looks for the New York double as it was a 40-0 winner at the Giants in Week 1, the largest shutout win in franchise history. The Cowboys' over-under point total for Sunday is 24.5.
Washington is the +850 second favorite to be Sunday’s lowest-scoring team with the Commanders in Denver.