joe flacco jets
Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports

The Jets will travel down to Miami to face the Dolphins in Week 18. Instead of Mike White starting under center again, or Zach Wilson trying to end his year on a high note, New York is starting veteran signal-caller, Joe Flacco.

Head coach Robert Saleh plainly stated that the team is starting Flacco because he gives them their best chance of winning. Based on how things have gone at quarterback for the Jets the past few weeks, not many can argue that. But as Saleh has done many times this year, he provided a soundbite that’ll make you scratch your head. Or, just shake it in disgust.

Here’s what he said:

Huh? It’s one thing to compliment your player, but this just makes no sense. On multiple fronts.

Let’s start by taking this literally. Football in January is its own kind of beast. But then again, the Jets will be in Miami on Sunday. As of this writing, Weather.com says it’ll be 79 degrees and partly cloudy. There’s also a 12% chance of precipitation with winds gusting up to 10 mph.

I’m no weather expert, but this doesn’t sound too nasty to me.

Let’s move on to the other possibility. Maybe Saleh wasn’t being literal and was speaking in metaphors. New York’s season has turned nasty, after all. That’ll happen after a 6-3 start is ruined by a five-game losing streak (and six losses in seven games).

After starting for New York over the season’s first three weeks, the only other time Flacco entered a game was in Week 14 against the Buffalo Bills. That’s when White had to leave after getting pummeled in the ribs.

He fumbled and completed just one of three passes for one yard before heading back to the sideline. Between Weeks 15-17, Saleh could’ve turned to Flacco instead of Wilson and White with the Jets’ playoffs life at stake. This is probably when the “weather” was the “nastiest” if we want to use Saleh’s language.

But they didn’t do that. And unless something drastic happens, the storm has passed and Sunday’s game means nothing.

This is just another example of Saleh saying a little too much. Just say Joe Flacco gives New York the best shot at winning and leave it at that. Don’t compare him to a Ford truck when we all know it makes no sense.

Matt Musico can be reached at [email protected] and you can follow him on Twitter: @mmusico8.

Matt Musico is an editor for ESNY. He’s been writing about baseball and the Mets for the past decade. His work has been featured on numberFire, MetsMerized Online, Bleacher Report, and Yahoo! Sports.