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Thursday, March 28, 2024

Jets’ Sauce Gardner explains benching Zach Wilson for Mike White in ‘Madden’

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“The backup quarterback is the most popular player on the team.”

Potentially, in the video game team, as well.

Zach Wilson was public enemy No. 1 for Jets fans throughout the 2022 season. The 2021 No. 2 overall pick was, by any measure, putrid this past season, with an ill-fated press conference relegating him to the bench, replaced by Mike White as Jets starter, until a White injury forced him back into action.

Some of those frustrations with Wilson seeped over into the locker room, where players were, reportedly, upset with the quarterback’s lack of progression. That has seemingly spilled over into the offseason, and into the digital world.

MORE: Zach Wilson vows to fight for job, make new QB addition’s life ‘hell’

Star rookie Sauce Gardner apparently opted to play with Mike White and not Zach Wilson as the team’s quarterback during an NFL-sponsored “Madden” gaming session recently, leading some to believe that Gardner picked a side in the White-Wilson war.

NFL Network’s “Good Morning Football” explained the situation:

Gardner, though, refuted that he made any changes to the roster or the starter, explaining that White was already the team’s quarterback when he was handed the controller.

“I never subbed Zach out for Mike. When I got the controller, Mike was already in and he was throwing dots, so there was no need to take him out😂,” Gardner tweeted.

To Gardner’s point, “Madden” features live rosters, which means, if the game is connected to the internet, then the rosters are automatically updated based on real-life changes. White was the Jets’ QB1 around the time the season ended, ahead of Wilson.

For what it’s worth, White has a 66 overall rating in “Madden,” while Wilson has a 70 overall rating. Wilson holds the edge in most major ratings categories, too, including throwing power, speed, short accuracy and deep accuracy. White holds the edge in medium accuracy, according to the game.

Curiously, though, Joe Flacco was named starter for the Week 18 finale vs. the Dolphins, so if the roster were to change, then Flacco would have been at the top of the virtual depth chart. That is unless the game updated again to indicate Flacco’s free agent status.

Or, maybe we’re all just thinking way too hard about a video game.

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