Aaron Glenn has spoken in no uncertain terms, plain, blunt, and hard-nosed. At Jets training camp, the coach held nothing back about Justin Fields’ recurring weaknesses: “If he is to be believed… [Fields has been] holding the ball too long. Deep shots float. Reads stall.” It was a blunt, unflattering assessment from a coach who knows that unresolved hesitation can negate a quarterback’s physical strengths. Glenn’s tone indicates a developmental plan based on candor, getting past Fields’s worst tendencies while still placing bets on his untouchable potential. The same directness was repeated behind the scenes by an offense coach.
Per The Athletic, an anonymous coach said: “(The Jets) know who he is, what he is, and they are going to try to structure things for him. The problem is, the hardest thing to fix with a quarterback is keeping their eyes up the field, seeing the field, and not being affected by the rush. And those are three of the worst things that he does.” In other words, Justin Fields’ success in New York isn’t about uncovering undetected ability. It’s about whether the Jets can create an offense that conceals his weaknesses long enough for him to develop beyond them.
The stats make it plain why that’s such a task. Fields peaked among Tier voters at a low 3 entering 2023. His average tier vote entering 2025 (3.74) is almost identical to what it was after his 2021 rookie season (3.72). That lack of perceived growth reflects the reality that Fields has played enough for evaluators to stop assuming untapped upside. New York knows he can run around and through defenders. But it’s whether he can handle defenses at NFL speed consistently?
The blueprint for making it happen isn’t theoretical. A season ago, the Steelers began 4-2 with Fields in the lineup and were only 20th in offensive EPA per play during that period. The twist was that they combined his running threat with a top-five combined EPA from special teams and defense. That equation, relying on a defense-first profile while requiring Fields to be the run game, could perfectly suit the Jets.
As one head coach explained: “This is another guy who, in the pure-pass world, you say probably not, but you put him in Tier 3 because he is the run game, probably, and then on top of that, the Jets are hopefully going to play good defense. If they put together an RPO play-action system, this guy could easily be a really positive thing for them.”
But the style has boundaries. As another offensive coach put it: “At the end of the third quarter, you will be down 8-10 points. Great, you kept it close. Now, what? “ It’s the question Glenn will need to answer before the urgency of the season intensifies. Their camp installations have already gravitated toward half-field reads, rollouts, and play-action concepts meant to streamline Fields’ process. The flashes of broken-play deep completions, scramble drills that reverse field position are there.
Whether that is sufficient to win late in games. Whether defenses eliminate the run and reduce quarterbacks to pure-passing situations will determine whether the Jets’ bet on Fields is a one-year experiment or the foundation for something larger.
Jets QB Justin Fields’ debut provides measured optimism
It wasn’t a full reveal, but it was sufficient to provide the Jets with a glimpse into the Justin Fields they’re looking to see in 2025. On his unofficial New York debut, Fields required only one possession to place points on the board. Driving the offense 79 yards in 10 plays and finishing off the drive with a 13-yard scramble that demonstrates precisely why his athleticism is one of the league’s most deadly weapons.
Making three of four passes for 42 yards and adding 14 rushing yards, Fields was calm in and out of the huddle, impressing head coach Aaron Glenn with his composure and tempo. “We know he has [the run] in his bag,” Glenn replied. “The thing he showed was patience. We can call a shot play, and if it’s not there, he’ll check it down. That’s growth.”
Fields’ passing was effective, if not flashy, a 6-yard zip pass to Tyler Johnson to make a third-down completion, and a 24-yard completion to Andrew Beck that relied on yards after the catch. His only miss was a close-out completion to Garrett Wilson on an out route. But in a preseason where the Jets have been cautious to assess structure and execution over box score pyrotechnics. The larger takeaway was the efficient operation: no penalties, no collapses in protection, and a quarterback who is happy to take what the defense presents him. Instead of trying to force a play into coverage.
For a player whose 9.0% sack rate ranked near the bottom of the league last year, those are small but meaningful wins. Of course, one series doesn’t erase the inconsistencies seen in camp. Reports of choppy practices against the Jets’ defense have followed Fields since the pads went on. And both he and Glenn know that the preseason can only offer so much truth. Nevertheless, the premiere seemed like progress toward drowning out the din.
Fields dismissed outside criticism afterward, saying, “The only people whose opinions are important to me are the men in the building.” It’s the stock response of a quarterback. But on Saturday night, Fields followed it up by doing precisely what his new team required of him. Opening things up on offense, dictating the pace, and getting the drive finished in the end zone.
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