New York Jets Name Joe Flacco as Week 6 Starter for Injured Sam Darnold

Joe Flacco will be the New York Jets starting quarterback for at least one more. It will be Flacco in place of Sam Darnold for the Jets’ Week 6 game at the Miami Dolphins.

Flacco started last week in the Jets 30-10 loss last week to the Arizona Carinals. Darnold suffered his shoulder injury two weeks ago in the Jets loss to the Denver Broncos on a play where he was sacked and thrown to the ground. He was taken out of the game and examined, missing four plays before returning and eventually finishing out the loss.

While the severity of the injury is unknown, last week Jets head coach Adam Gase said it is a sprain to the AC joint.

“I think he’s better than what he was last week. I think the more time we give him, the better he will feel,” Gase said on Wednesday in his virtual press conference.

“I think he’s taken the steps that we needed him to take to give us an opportunity to get into next week. We’ll be able to make that decision when he gets there. I think he’s doing a good job of communicating and letting us know how he feels where it’s not what I want to head. He’s being honest as far as his pain tolerance, his range of motion, how he feels.

“Him being able to work on his throwing motion the past couple of days is really positive. I do think he’s a quick healer. There’s no doubt that any of us would say he’s anything but tough. We want to make sure he’s good before we put him out there.”

On Sunday, Flacco got the nod for the Jets, his first start in almost a year when he was a member of the Broncos. He dusted off some early rust, finishing a respectable 18-of-33 for 195 yards and a touchdown despite multiple drops and being sacked four times.

Rookie left tackle Mekhi Becton (shoulder) will not practice on Wednesday but Gase said the Jets “are taking it one day at a time to see how the week goes, see if there is an opportunity there.”

Wide receiver Breshad Perriman (ankle), who has not played since Week 2, was limited in practice and trending in the right direction.