Wilkerson benched again, may miss finale

Todd Bowles said Wednesday that Muhammad Wilkerson had “served his sentence,” but that punishment was extended Sunday.

The countdown to Wilkerson’s final day as a Jet continued with the defensive end standing on the sidelines in street clothes, watching his team fall to the Chargers, 14-7, at MetLife Stadium.

It was the second straight game in which the highestpaid Jet was inactive, and he likely will face the same fate again next week against the Patriots, all stemming from being late to another meeting in the week leading up to the Week 15 game against the Saints.

“I made him inactive,” Bowles said. “Coach’s decision.”

Wilkerson was not made available to reporters after the game.

Bowles was noncommittal about Wilkerson’s status for the season finale, but the Jets would be taking a risk by playing him. His $16.75 million salary for 2018 is guaranteed only if he gets injured, so if he stays healthy through the end of this season, the Jets can cut him by the third day of the league year in March without any salary hit.

Wilkerson practiced during the week, but was not involved in the first team’s walk-throughs and saw limited reps during drills, a source told The Post’s Brian Costello.

“Everybody practices,” Bowles said. “He didn’t know he wasn’t going to play. I didn’t know he wasn’t going to play.”

That final decision came Saturday, Bowles said. Asked if it was a decision partially based on finances, Bowles only offered, “coach’s decision.”

Pressed on whether anyone else was involved in the decision to make Wilkerson inactive, Bowles replied, “We talked, but eventually it’s my decision.”

One factor that could impact Wilkerson’s status next week is Leonard William’s back injury. He exited the game in the second quarter and never returned. Williams said it was “nothing too serious” and he should be able to play next week.

“We’ll see how many healthy bodies we have and deal with it next week,” Bowles said.