The Jets will have a big decision on their hands in April if they own the No. 2 pick. Do they draft a quarterback? Do they trade the pick? Do they draft someone else?
If they go with a quarterback, which one?
Those questions won’t be answered until draft day, but Joe Douglas will spend a lot of time between now and then evaluating all his options. One of the most intriguing options with the No. 2 pick is BYU quarterback Zach Wilson.
A fringe draft prospect a year ago, Wilson catapulted himself to the top of the board with an electric style of play that fits the current quarterback model. Fresh off his five-touchdown performance in a rout of UCF, Wilson is Pro Football Focus’ highest-graded college quarterback this season. He also ranks top-five in competition percentage, passing yards, yards per attempt and passing touchdowns.
For awhile, Ohio State’s Justin Fields or North Dakota State’s Trey Lance were the best quarterbacks in the draft behind Trevor Lawrence. But between Fields’ inconsistent play and Lance’s limited tape – he only played one game this season because of the coronavirus pandemic – neither has emerged as the consensus No. 2 arm. Wilson, meanwhile, has proven himself as a precision passer and dual-threat playmaker. Now, it’s possible he leapfrogs Fields and Lance in the draft.
How did Zach Wilson do this
— PFF College (@PFF_College) December 23, 2020
Wilson checks off a lot of boxes for what teams look for in a modern NFL quarterback.
His 6-foot-3, 210-pound frame is a solid foundation for a player at his position and he backs it up with great plays. Wilson is among the best statistical signal-callers in the whole country. He threw for 3,699 yards and 33 touchdowns this season and rushed for 263 yards with 10 scores. Wilson’s 73.1 completion percentage is also astonishing and gives credence to the idea that he doesn’t make many mistakes. He threw just three interceptions this season and only had four turnover-worthy passes on 353 dropbacks – best in the country.
Wilson has great pocket awareness, too. His average time to throw is just 2.74 seconds when blitzed, per Pro Football Focus, and he’s only allowed 10 pressures – including five sacks – while being blitzed on 22.2 percent of his dropbacks. When he’s flushed outside the pocket, Wilson excels as well. He has the second-best PFF passing grade (87.5) when throwing outside the pocket.
The knocks against Wilson are not necessarily his fault. He hasn’t played the best competition during his college career and he floundered against an 11-0 Coastal Carolina team. Wilson dominated every game he was supposed to, though, including Monday night’s Boca Raton Bowl. He lit up a weak UCF defense three times through the air and twice on the ground.
Looking back even further, Wilson wasn’t exactly dynamite prior to this season. Unlike Lawrence and Fields, who’ve looked elite the past two seasons, Wilson only recently broke out. He averaged just 1,980 passing yards, 11.5 touchdowns and six interceptions during the past two seasons.
His fit in a Jets offense is reliant on who Douglas chooses to coach the team. There are going to be flaws in Wilson’s game as he acclimates to the NFL, and they’ll need to be massaged out. A good offensive-minded coach would be able to cut out those mistakes quickly, depending on who is hired.
There is a long evaluation process ahead for Douglas and the Jets that will push the team closer to an answer for the draft. If the Jets miraculously finish the season with the No. 1 overall pick, this question becomes moot: they’ll just draft Lawrence. But if they own the No. 2 pick, there will be a serious discussion as to who the Jets should take, and it very well may be Wilson when all is said and done.
