The Jets will have their third starting quarterback in three games.
Adam Gase named Luke Falk the starter for Sunday's game at New England. Backup quarterback Trevor Siemian will miss the rest of the season with an injury he suffered in Monday's loss to the Browns, Gase said. Sam Darnold remains out indefinitely with mono. But there was a positive development there. Gase said Darnold was in the Jets' facility Tuesday morning and is feeling better, but there is still no timetable for his return.
"Luke will be the starter until Sam gets back," Gase said during a conference call Tuesday.
The Jets have their bye after New England, so there is hope that Darnold can return the following week. But it's too soon to determine.
"We'll have a better idea when the doctors give us the green light that he can progress," Gase said. "It's more on the doctors letting us know when to proceed with him."
The Jets are in the process of figuring out who they want to sign as a backup and for insurance. If Falk would have gotten injured in Monday's 23-3 defeat, Le'Veon Bell was next in line to play quarterback.
Gase said he and general manager Joe Douglas have talked about some names. Two possibilities are Brock Osweiler and David Fales. Both of them played for Gase previously when he was the coach with the Dolphins. Osweiler also was with Gase in Denver when he was the quarterback coach and offensive coordinator. Both Osweiler and Fales are free agents.
"We're in the discussions right now," Gase said. "Joe and his crew swung down here earlier just to throw some names out there. They're getting with (coordinator) Dowell (Loggains) as well. We're trying to figure out what's best for us, especially for this game, this week. We're in that process right now. We will have to at least have an answer sometime soon. But we haven't come to a conclusion yet."
Siemian suffered an ugly injury in the second quarter Monday night. Browns defensive end Myles Garrett hit Siemian late and he landed awkwardly with his knee and ankle bending in an unnatural way. Gase said Siemian didn't break anything and he will have surgery.
"It's more ligaments," Gase said. "I think all of us are surprised when you watched it, it wasn't a break. It's an ugly looking play. I think there's a good amount of damage in there where surgery will be needed and it's going to be time for him to recover."
Falk came in and made his NFL debut after the Jets signed him earlier Monday from the practice squad. He completed 20-of-25 passes for 198 yards.
The Jets also could be without outside linebacker Jordan Jenkins in New England. He suffered a calf injury and was limping noticeably when he left the locker room. Gase said Jenkins is week-to-week. C.J. Mosley (groin) and Quinnen Williams (ankle) are day-to-day, Gase said. Both of them missed Monday's game.
