NEW YORK — Zach Wilson’s mental growth was evident during the Jets’ second day of OTAs in Florham Park on Tuesday.
The Jets’ OTAs only competition drills featured 7-on-7. For the majority of Wilson’s reps, he showed slightly more decisiveness, which shows more command of the offense.
“He clearly has much better understanding,” Jets coach Robert Saleh said. “It just clicks differently in year two.”
Wilson did a solid job of going through his reads and quickly finding his checkdowns if his early options weren’t available, something that was inconsistent throughout his rookie season.
The early improvement wasn’t much, but it was noticeable, and since those small details within QB play are harder to detect in non-padded practice, that shows progress.
“I would say it’s more of just you’re comfortable,” Wilson said. “You’re understanding what things you need to think about and what things you don’t need to think about. You’re just more efficient within your thoughts and being able to simplify the game. I feel like you can see more by saying less.”
From a production standpoint, Wilson’s overall day was solid. He unofficially went 8 for 14 during the 7-on-7 periods, outside of the goal line 7-on-7 session.
One of the day’s highlight plays featured Wilson wasting no time on his read, rocketing a sideline throw to Corey Davis that slipped past the outstretched arm of Bryce Hall, which led to a plenty of yards gained after the catch.
Later on, Wilson slung a pass over the middle, past defenders, to D.J. Montgomery for a big gain after looking right then coming back to Montgomery.
Another highlight: when Wilson rolled out and fired a deep pass to Michael Carter on a broken play.
The play took longer than everyone would have preferred, but seeing Wilson flash his ability to navigate off script is always entertaining.
“Just every single rep, just going through that process of where am I taking my eyes, what’s my reads right here, how can I simplify this play,” Wilson said. “Just use every single rep to my advantage because you want to take as many as we can until the season comes.”
One issue that consistently plagued Wilson last season was that he wasn’t reading opposing defenses quickly enough, holding onto the ball too long — a common mistake for rookies still learning and building chemistry.
That’s why mental growth is so important for young QBs in their second season. Maturing into a franchise guy is more a mental game than a physical one. Wilson’s arm talent is undeniable, but becoming a smart QB is what will transform the Jets’ franchise.
And OTAs are perfect for Wilson to continue working on that.
