The Jets’ Black Friday matchup against the Dolphins will be a test for the offense and a quarterback who Garrett Wilson says knows the playbook “like no one else I’ve met.”
It’s been just three days since the Jets benched Zach Wilson for Tim Boyle, the team’s former third-string quarterback, and it’s already apparent to his teammates how much Boyle has prepared throughout the season in case the starting opportunity presented itself.
“He’s really precise and he’s really on his details,” Garrett Wilson said Wednesday. “It all starts with how he preps while he wasn’t taking these reps, while he didn’t know what was gonna happen that week. He’s been doing it the same every week. And then all of a sudden, he’s starting this weekend. For him, it’s like, ‘I don’t have to change anything because I’m already going about it the right way.’ ”
Tight end C.J. Uzomah echoed Wilson, saying Boyle has prepped each week as if he is the starter.
Plus, Boyle has become more vocal, Uzomah said.
Offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett, who worked with Boyle for two seasons in Green Bay, noted Boyle’s “tenacity” when it comes to preparation and has also applauded Boyle for his increased confidence since their time together with the Packers in 2019-20.
“Just being so comfortable in the system and understanding it. The terms are a lot the same. When we came together to build this thing for Aaron [Rodgers] from the jump, Tim was a good conduit for everybody, the players and all those guys,” Hackett said. “So, I think for him to have this now for a third year, you’re always looking for any quarterback to have experience long-term in one system because everything is more fluid.”
Nevertheless, the three days that have brought a fresh perspective to the Jets also come with the challenge of establishing chemistry between a new quarterback and his receivers — and in a short week.
In an effort to adjust quickly, everyone has a more “heightened awareness of being locked in,” Uzomah said.
“He’s gonna say things differently. His mechanisms of the play call, getting to the line, and things like that are a little bit different,” Uzomah told The Post. “So, there has to be a little bit of more of like ‘Alright this is on us.’ We have to make sure we’re on our stuff. And he’s making sure he’s making us comfortable with how he calls it, and what he calls, and how he wants certain things done.
“There’s been a lot of communication back and forth. A lot of bouncing ideas off one another, back and forth between every position group and him.”
No matter Boyle’s preparation, Wilson explained that there are extra steps he and his teammates can take while on the line of scrimmage.
“[Boyle] truly knows every single detail [of the playbook]. Because of that, he’s going to check to the right look. Now it’s like, ‘Alright, how do we be on our details?’ Because he’s gonna see that look, it’s not just call the play, leave the huddle, and brainlessly run it. It’s really pay[ing] attention,” he said. “Look back at the quarterback and just sure we’re having those same pictures, getting in the right look so that we can take advantage of what they’re giving us.”
Boyle will start against the Dolphins without having a win on his résumé as an NFL starter.
Across five seasons, he has appeared in 18 games with the Packers, Lions, Bears and Jets.
His only three starts came with the Bears in 2021 when he went 0-3.