Jets' Zach Wilson is 'our quarterback,' coach Robert Saleh says

The New York Jets (5-3) are one of the surprise teams of the 2022 NFL season. With that said, second-year quarterback Zach Wilson has underwhelmed.

New York dropped its 13th consecutive game to the New England Patriots in Week 8, 22-17. Wilson finished the game with 355 passing yards, two passing touchdowns, three interceptions and a 64.6 quarterback rating, completing 20 of 41 passes (48.8%).

Despite the loss – which snapped a four-game winning streak – and questions about Wilson's play, Jets head coach Robert Saleh said Monday that a quarterback change isn't coming and Wilson has been a "big part" of the team's success.

"I think he [Wilson] is a lot better than he was a year ago, like I’ve told you guys," Saleh said per the Jets' official website. "Like everyone, we can all look in the mirror and look at the decisions that we’ve all made yesterday, we all took turns, whether it was an ill-advised penalty, whether it was special teams play, protection. Whatever it was, we’ve all got to get better. Zach obviously is the quarterback, he’s got the ball in his hands, he’s the most obvious in terms of being critical on, but he’s gotten a lot better, expecting him to continue to get better.

"Do I expect it all to be clean? No, every quarterback has their days, but he’s our quarterback because we think he is going to get better, and he is going to continue to prove why he was the No. 2 pick."

Wilson suffered a knee injury in the Jets' preseason opener against the Philadelphia Eagles. The injury kept him off the field for the first three games of the regular season. Joe Flacco started in place of Wilson, going 1-2.

Wilson has totaled 1,048 passing yards, three passing touchdowns, five interceptions and a 71.0 quarterback rating, completing 54.9% of his passes in five games this season. He hasn't thrown a touchdown or interception in three of his five starts.

New York's offense has taken some hits of late, with running back Breece Hall (knee) and guard Alijah Vera-Tucker (triceps) suffering season-ending injuries. Meanwhile, wide receiver Elijah Moore recently requested a trade, which comes after fellow receiver Denzel Mims requested a trade of his own in the summer.

The Jets selected Wilson with the No. 2 pick in the 2021 NFL Draft out of BYU. He started 13 games in his rookie season. Wilson totaled 2,334 passing yards, nine passing touchdowns, 11 interceptions and a 69.7 quarterback rating, completing 55.6% of his passes in 2021. He also ran for four touchdowns.

New York plays host to the first-place Buffalo Bills (6-1) on Sunday.