Justin Fields has struggled his entire career with processing things quickly and releasing the ball fast.
He has the #1 longest time to throw out of any quarterback in the NFL over the last four years.
Last year in Pittsburgh, he had the #4 longest time to throw out of 46 qualifying QBs.
That’s a feature, not a bug, with Fields.
Thinking about the Jets in 2025, the key is to consider who Field is replacing.
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He’s replacing Aaron Rodgers, an exact opposite style of quarterback.
Fields holds the ball, doesn’t process well, and scrambles early and often.
Rodgers never holds the ball and never scrambles.
Rodgers had one of the fastest time to throw last year.
And in terms of percentage of throws coming after 3 seconds, Fields ranked #1 highest.
Rodgers ranked #34.
That’s a huge difference and puts a TON of stress on the same Jets offensive line.
So the Jets experimented in the preseason.
Of QBs with over 10 dropbacks, Fields ranked:
- #92-of-96 QBs in air yards, averaging just 3.9 air yards per att
- #94-of-96 QBs in rate of throws going 10+ yards downfield
The Jets lowered Fields' target depth massively, and it allowed him to release the ball much faster, averaging just 2.57 seconds to throw compared to 2.93 seconds in 2024 and 3.12 seconds in 2023.
Was this just a low sample size anomaly, or are the Jets going to try to get Fields to throw quick and short to reduce his time to throw?
The Steelers know Fields from last year, and it will be interesting to see how they defend him and what the Jets offense tries to do to help Fields in Week 1 of the 2025 NFL season.