In October 2021, Mike White became the first quarterback since 1950 with 400 passing yards and three touchdown passes in his first career start.
It came, as Bengals fans remember painfully, against Cincinnati on Halloween at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
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It was a game Joe Burrow and Co. led through three quarters, 24-17. The Bengals were on the road, but against a team that entered 1-5 with a backup quarterback starting.
That backup helped the Jets outscore Cincinnati 17-7 in the fourth quarter to hand the Bengals a stunning 34-31 loss, one of five three-point losses Cincinnati had that season, including Super Bowl 56.
What to know about White, signed in the wake of Burrow’s turf-toe injury to the Bengals’ practice squad:
White made his first NFL start against the Bengals in 2021
Replacing the injured Zach Wilson, White passed for 405 yards and three touchdowns, including two fourth-quarter TDs.
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White’s final TD pass – which gave the Jets their first lead since their first opening-quarter points of that season – was caught by former Bengals tight end Tyler Kroft.
In addition, White’s 37 completions were the most by any player in NFL history in his first career start.
The Bengals were unable to capitalize on the first of White’s two interceptions. And a controversial unnecessary-roughness penalty was called against Bengals cornerback Mike Hilton when Hilton’s helmet met Jets running back Ty Johnson’s late in the fourth quarter.
White’s other two starts in 2021 were less impressive
Days after rallying the Jets past Cincinnati, White passed for 95 yards with a touchdown in a 45-30 loss to the Colts. In his final start of the season against Buffalo, White passed for 251 yards with four interceptions in a 45-17 loss to the Bills.
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White made four more starts for the Jets during the 2022 season, totaling 1,192 passing yards with three TDs and four INTs.
He hasn’t started an NFL game since the 2022 season.
White was waived by the Bills in August
White played in one game for Buffalo in 2024, completing 3-of-11 attempts for 28 yards.
White completed five of his six attempts for 74 yards with a TD over six games with the Miami Dolphins in 2023.
In 15 regular-season games over four seasons, White has 199 completions on 324 attempts for 2247 passing yards with nine TDs and 13 INTs.
White was a fifth-round draft pick of the Cowboys in 2018
Dallas selected White late in the fifth round, one pick after the Bengals selected cornerback Darius Phillips.
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White played in college at South Florida and Western Kentucky.
As a senior at WKU, he led Conference USA with 4,177 passing yards.
Mike White celebrates the New York Jets’ win against the Cincinnati Bengals in October 2021
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Mike White led Jets’ 4th-quarter comeback in 2021 to stun Bengals