Justin Fields has backed the Jets into the most unenviable lose-lose scenario

The New York Jets have a Justin Fields problem — and it's a more complex problem than one might initially believe. That much has become painfully obvious through the team's first four games of the season.

The Jets fell to a lowly 0-4 with their 27-21 loss to the Miami Dolphins on Monday Night Football in Week 4. It was a game that never quite felt as close as the final score would suggest.

Fields and the offense were inept for much of the night, with the former Ohio State quarterback failing to complete a single pass that wasn't on a designed quick read or a check-down until the final minute of the third quarter.

While Fields' box score numbers may look encouraging, they hardly tell the full story. Fields was a complete and utter liability for over half of this football game. And as a result, the Jets find themselves in an unenviable position.

Justin Fields has the Jets in an unfortunate quarterback bind

The issues with Fields in the first half were almost entirely mental. The Jets' quarterback was a disaster with his pre-snap routine, repeatedly failing to identify the MIKE or call out protection changes.

That resulted in a barrage of unblocked Dolphins rushers teeing off on him, derailing drives before they even had a chance to develop. Fields looked overwhelmed, and the offense sputtered as a result, leaving the Jets in an early hole they couldn’t climb out of.

The illegal shift penalties stemmed from Fields not giving his teammates time to get set. He also drew a delay of game flag. From a mental standpoint, the Jets had a quarterback who was completely unplayable in the first half, and offensive coordinator Tanner Engstrand's gameplan reflected that.

You can't run an offense with the quarterback play the Jets received for three quarters of this game. It's an untenable situation.

Fields was able to salvage his day, at least statistically, with an improved final quarter, but the Jets have now seen horrific quarterback play from their fifth-year passer for six of his last seven quarters.

The harsh reality is that the Jets are stuck. They aren't going to win football games with their quarterback playing like Fields just did for the majority of the game. Their defense isn't good enough to overcome inept quarterback performances and special-teams blunders.

Unfortunately, if the Jets were to make the decision to switch to Tyrod Taylor, there's no coming back from that. You can't put that cat back in the bag. Once Fields is benched, that's it — the Jets have decided they're moving on.

Playing Taylor does little for the Jets this season, as the goal has been from the start to evaluate this roster — including Fields — in what should be a retooling year. But Fields has been borderline unplayable now for a majority of his Jets season.

There comes a point when the Jets have to raise the floor of their offense at the expense of their ceiling. It's likely that the Jets haven't reached that point yet, but they're inching closer with every inept performance from their starting quarterback.

The Jets need Justin Fields to be better. And for the sake of his NFL future, Fields needs it too.

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