Jets QB Tim Boyle left to pick up pieces after embarrassing loss to Dolphins

Tim Boyle had been sacked only twice in a six-year career in which he had attempted 120 passes — and one of those was just last weekend in a mop-up appearance for the Jets against the Bills.

Then came the inaugural Black Friday game against the Dolphins at MetLife Stadium, Boyle’s first start as a Jets quarterback in place of Zach Wilson.

He was sacked seven times in a 34-13 loss, which normally would not be a shock given the state of the Jets’ line but in this case was made even worse because of Boyle’s reputation for getting rid of the ball quickly.

That did not help him against Miami, yet another illustration of the Jets’ dysfunction on offense.

Most of their statistical accomplishments came in the fourth quarter, after the outcome no longer was in doubt. But even with the help of garbage time, Boyle finished 27-for-38 for 179 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions, including a 99-yard pick-6.

“Obviously, not all seven of those are on the offensive linemen,” he said later. “I think the majority of them are on me.”

Not really. But Boyle has been around long enough to know diplomacy, and he had lavish praise for the linemen. They did what they could, which was not enough.

The question now is whether Boyle will get another chance when the Jets host the Falcons on Dec. 3.

Coach Robert Saleh was noncommittal. Asked if he might consider backup Trevor Siemian — who would become the Jets’ fourth starter of the season — Saleh said simply, “I’m not there yet.”

Saleh said he would have a better answer about Boyle’s performance after studying the game video.

“I thought he battled,” the coach said. “I thought he did some good things, some things he needs to be better at also.”

One of Boyle’s interceptions was a doozy — the long-distance heave in the final seconds of the first half that Miami’s Jevon Holland returned 99 yards for a touchdown.

Boyle had the last chance to make a tackle, but Holland faked his way around him to complete the shocking play.

Tackling is not Boyle’s job, though. Scoring points is, and he failed to do that before throwing a meaningless 1-yard touchdown pass to Garrett Wilson with 4:37 left.

Teammates sought to be supportive, praising his command of the huddle and cadence.

“I think Tim balled,” Wilson said. “Given the product we’re putting on the field offensively, him working through it, man, it’s tough. I feel like sometimes you can lose maybe a little confidence in yourself when you’re part of an offense that’s slumping like this.

“As far as the guys go, I always make sure that I’m going to be the guy to tell them ‘You’re a baller,’ and Tim is every bit of that, and that’s how I feel he went out there and did it today.”

The most high-profile support Boyle got came from the injured Aaron Rodgers, with whom he played in Green Bay from 2018-20 and who was on the sideline.

“Aaron’s a peaceful, calming presence for me,” Boyle said. “He does a good job of painting a good picture for a quarterback .  .  . He came on the field a few times and told me a few things he was thinking about.

“Aaron, obviously, is a close friend and grateful for him and glad that he was on the sideline tonight helping me out.”

For now, Rodgers will remain only an adviser, not a player.

So would Boyle like another shot for a better outcome now that he has a full game under his belt?

“I have no clue what happens moving forward,” he said, “but I can control what I can control and I know we’re going to go back and Coach [Saleh] said it best at the end of the game in the locker room:

“We have to get our minds right to have the best six weeks of our life moving forward.”

By Neil Best

neil.best@newsday.com@sportswatch

Neil Best first worked at Newsday in 1982, returned in 1985 after a detour to Alaska and has been here since, specializing in high schools, college basketball, the NFL and most recently sports media and business.