Fields to start for 0-7 Jets in Cincinnati on Sunday as Tyrod out

Justin Fields will start at quarterback for the New York Jets on Sunday in Cincinnati after the team ruled veteran Tyrod Taylor out with a knee injury on Saturday, the club announced, a development that leaves the winless Jets to send Fields into Week 8 amid mounting criticism and roster absences. Rookie Brady Cook has been elevated to serve as Fields' backup.

The decision comes after Fields was benched at halftime of last Sunday’s 13-6 loss to the Carolina Panthers and following public comments this week from owner Woody Johnson criticizing the team’s passing production. Johnson, speaking at the NFL owners meetings, said the offense would look better “if we can just complete a pass” and added that Fields “has ability, but something just is not jiving,” while also expressing confidence in head coach Aaron Glenn. Glenn declined earlier in the week to name a starter publicly, saying he would not give the Bengals a competitive advantage. “We’ll have a quarterback on Sunday, I will tell you that. I wouldn’t want to give the Bengals a competitive advantage,” he said.

Fields’ return is driven in part by circumstance. Taylor, who replaced Fields in the second half last week and threw...