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New York Jets quarterback Brady Cook reacting in the middle of an NFL game against the Miami Dolphins.
A new era is upon us.
New York Jets head coach Aaron Glenn announced on Friday, December 12, that Brady Cook will get his first career start on Sunday versus the Jacksonville Jaguars.
ESPN’s Rich Cimini revealed that this is the first time in 50 years that the Jets are starting an undrafted free agent at quarterback.
“It was Dec. 15, 1975, when JJ Jones started for the injured Joe Namath, who wound up playing anyway. Jones, out of Fisk University in Nashville, Tennessee, lasted only a few series, finishing with as many completions as interceptions — one,” Cimini explained. “Jones, the first Black quarterback in Jets history, did some relief work the following week in the season finale and never played another game in the NFL. He went on to the CFL.”
Cook Will Get a Chance to Bounce Back in a Big Way
The rookie passer out of Missouri got his first taste of the NFL in Week 14 against the Miami Dolphins.
Tyrod Taylor hurt his groin on the second drive of the game, which forced Cook onto the field. The only reason he was active on the roster is that Justin Fields has been battling knee soreness.
Cook finished 14-of-30, throwing for 163 passing yards. However, he didn’t score a touchdown, was sacked six times, and threw two interceptions.
Which means it can only go up from here.
In all seriousness, Cook will be in a much better position against the Jaguars. He received the first team reps throughout the week. That will likely provide him with confidence in his new role and much-needed chemistry with his teammates to get everyone on the same page.
“I was really happy with, ultimately, how he performed [last week],” offensive coordinator Tanner Engstrand told the media this week via Cimini. “We’ve got to clean up the turnovers and the fumbles, and he knows that, but there’s some things that he did in the pass game, as far as playing on time and working through his progressions and putting the ball in the right place, that were very encouraging.”
Head Coach Aaron Glenn Explains the Cook Decision
“So Tyrod will be out, Justin will be out … So that means Brady will be our starting quarterback this week. He has gotten all the reps with the ones, and Adrian [Martinez] will be our backup. [He] knows our system, again, he had been here since training camp, and he just came right in, he understands the flow of what we are gonna do as far as an offense,” Coach Glenn explained.
NFL Network Insider Tom Pelissero said Cook “will become the seventh rookie (and second undrafted) QB to start a game this season on Sunday for the Jets.”
Brady Cook will become the seventh rookie (and second undrafted) QB to start a game this season on Sunday for the Jets.
Here was the book on him from NFL coaches and scouts before the draft:
“I think he was comfortable even last week going into the game; it was just a tough situation with him not being able to get all the reps. Now this week, he has had the chance to get all of the reps with the ones. Get a chance to communicate with the O-Line, with the receivers, with the tight ends, with the coaching staff on exactly how we want to go about playing this game. Man, I have all of the confidence in the world that is something that I have stated from the very beginning, he will be a good player in this league, and he will have his opportunity again this week,” Glenn said of Cook.
Paul Esden Jr. covers the New York Jets for Heavy.com. A New York native, he co-hosts a morning show, “The Manchild Show with Boy Green Digital.” Before joining Heavy in 2021, Esden Jr. covered both national and New York sports for FanSided, Elite Sports NY, and The Score 1260. More about Paul Esden Jr.
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