Justin Fields Downplays 'Outside Noise' After Jets Owner Woody Johnson's Criticism

After the New York Jets secured a 39-38 win over the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday, Justin Fields downplayed comments made by Jets owner Woody Johnson regarding the team's quarterback situation.

"That's outside noise at the end of the day," Fields told reporters after the game. "I get that he's the owner of the team, but it's outside noise. The biggest thing was my teammates believing in me and my coaches still believing in me."

Johnson discussed New York's offensive struggles to open the 2025 season with reporters on Tuesday, saying, "If we could just complete a pass, it would look good."

"It's hard when you have a quarterback with a rating that we got," he added. "He has the ability, but something just is not jiving. But if you look at any head coach with a quarterback like that, you're gonna see similar results across the league. You have to play consistently at that position, and that's what we're gonna try to do."

Fields made his presence felt against the Bengals on Sunday, finishing 21-of-32 for 244 yards and one touchdown without committing a turnover. He also rushed for 31 yards.

The former first-round pick was part of a dominant Jets rushing attack, with 254 of their 502 total yards coming on the ground. New York also outscored Cincinnati 23-7 in the fourth quarter after trailing by as many as 15 points.

Fields' first season with the Jets hasn't gone smoothly, as they owned a record of 0-6 with him starting heading into Sunday's action. He completed 63.7 percent of his throws for just 845 yards and four touchdowns prior to the win over the Bengals.

Fields was benched at halftime of New York's 13-6 loss to the Carolina Panthers in Week 7, getting replaced by veteran Tyrod Taylor. After Taylor was ruled out of the matchup with Cincinnati due to a knee injury, Fields returned to the Jets' first-team offense.

While New York still sits at just 1-7 after Sunday's win, Fields will look to continue building upon his momentum from the game moving forward.