When Justin Fields spoke with reporters in the past several weeks, Topic 1 had been what his starting and playing status might be for an upcoming game.
This week, Fields saw his topics multiply into two compelling storylines.
The first line of questioning had been if he would be starting the upcoming game. Head coach Aaron Glenn has declined to declare who his QB will be against Cleveland when the team returns to MetLife Stadium on Sunday off its bye week. And Fields, like his coach, wasn't giving anything away in that regard.
"We'll see," Fields said about whether he'll be taking the first snaps against the Browns and their dominant defense.
Pressed further on that topic, he said he hasn't been told if he's the starter yet, and it wouldn't make any difference if he he had or hadn't.
"I just take it day by day, brother," he said. "I just go to work and work, that's it. Control what you can control."
But Topic 1 had to move over and give some room to Topic 2 after Wednesday's practice. Questions on his starting status were around Nos. 9 and 11 of his roughly 12-question set.
Topic 1-A was his response to the biggest day of deals in Jets history, when two defensive stars, DL and team captain Quinnen Williams and CB Sauce Gardner, were traded and three first-round picks and one Round 2 choice came in return from the Cowboys and Colts combined.
"I was surprised," Fields said in his calm and measured way of coming to a locker room no longer populated by two of his friends from the other side of the ball. "That's one of the things about this league that sucks. It's something that happens every year. You're surprised, but not, at the same time.
"You build these relationships with guys and the next day they're gone. You can't control any of that stuff. You've just got to get back to work the next day and keep going."
Glenn in his media availability before practice put it well regarding the departures of two first-round/Pro Bowl/All-Pro players from the roster: "The one constant in this league is change. This is a fluid game, fellas. Players come and go, coaches come and go."
Fields had a similar take on the business side of the NFL. "That's one thing in this league that doesn't change, and that is change," he said. "You have to adjust to it. The team that adjusts best keeps on going and ascending."
It can get confusing but Topic 2, which became Topic 1-A at midweek, could also be split into two parallel lines of inquiry, since with players departing, other players often arrive on the scene. In the case of the Jets' trades with Colts and with the Eagles a day earlier for CB Michael Carter II, Fields and the offense gained the services of two promising wideouts in Adonai Mitchell and John Metchie III.
"First and foremost, I'm excited to have those guys on the team," Fields said. "They're really talented, great football players. It's going to be kind of a slow process, but hopefully we'll catch them up to speed, a few plays at a time as each week goes along. ... These guys are very intensive and smart. I don't think they'll have any problem picking things up."
Glenn concurred on the Mitchell/Metchie acclimation process: "I don't know how long it's going to take to get those guys ready to play, but we're going to do everything we can to get them up to speed."
But the main topic now isn't who's starting or how the Jets are feeling about the departures of key defensive components. It's whether they can pair their 39-38 win at Cincinnati two Sundays ago with a second consecutive win, at home against the Browns.
"We've been building one thing since Week 1," Fields said. "A lot of those games were one-score games. Last game, we just happened to be on the other side of this one-score game this time. We know games are going to be like that week in and week out. But I think the biggest thing is building on this win and taking that into next week."
A day later, Glenn said: "It was an intense day. And now we're looking forward to playing Cleveland."
