Jets coach Aaron Glenn already has named Justin Fields his starting quarterback.
In replacing Aaron Rodgers, Fields will become the eighth different Week 1 quarterback for the Jets the past 14 seasons. It’s a role Fields is accustomed, unlike last season when the Steelers benched him after a 4-2 start.
“It was, of course, different for me and a space where I wasn’t necessarily comfortable,” Fields said, via Rich Cimini of ESPN.
Fields met with the media Wednesday in his first availability since signing a two-year, $40 million contract in free agency last month.
He said his benching didn’t play into his decision to leave the Steelers, who tried to re-sign Fields.
“You can’t take things personal,” Fields said. “That’s one thing I’ve learned over the years, not to take anything personal. At the end of the day, I was just excited of what the Jets had going on here with AG [Glenn] and just with the coaching staff, so it didn’t really have anything to do with Pittsburgh.”
At the same time, Fields admitted that sitting behind Russell Wilson was “a place where I wasn’t, really, never in . . . in my entire life.” In the final 12 games, including the postseason, Fields played 15 snaps in five games and threw two passes.
“Coach [Mike] Tomlin made a decision he thought was best for the team, and I’m never going to go against that,” Fields said. “I’m not a selfish guy whatsoever, so I just tried to change my perspective, get better each and every day in practice.”
Fields, 26, now gets a chance to start with his third time in his fifth season.
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