No one can say the New York Jets didn’t give Zach Wilson a shot.
They already benched him for awful play earlier this season, not leaving the door open for him to come back in, barring extreme circumstances. Thanks to a Mike White injury, Wilson would get the opportunity to start again.
And after an uneven but somewhat promising panopticon of a game against the Detroit Lions, the ground collapsed underneath Wilson against the putrid Jacksonville Jaguars defense (27th in yards coming in). Inevitably, the young QB’s awful performance — ironically juxtaposed to the bright Trevor Lawrence — led head coach Robert Saleh to do what he must for the sake of his team fighting for its postseason life:
Bench the former No. 2 overall pick. Again.
Saleh simply had no choice, given Wilson’s past precedent and the utter lifelessness of the Jets’ offense with him under center. With Wilson at the helm, the Jets’ offense did not cross midfield once of its own volition on Thursday night. The Jets punted five times on seven Wilson possessions as the QB threw a pick on another. In all actuality, an early Quinnen Williams forced fumble was the only reason the Jets put up three points while Wilson played quarterback for them.
No wonder Jets fans were thrilled to see someone else, literally anyone else in an eventual 19-3 loss that likely shuttered the team’s playoff hopes:
Chris Streveler is in. LOUD cheers.
— Zack Rosenblatt (@ZackBlatt) December 23, 2022
And, so, Wilson’s final stat line before being benched near the end of the third quarter — 9-of-18, 92 yards (a paltry 5.1 yards per attempt!), and one interception — is a perfect microcosm of the Wilson era in New York. Consistently inconsistent, without a rudder, and with no sign of any promise on the horizon.
That backup Chris Streveler — a man more known for his CFL exploits and who was on the practice squad only weeks ago — immediately took the Jets’ offense down on a 73-yard drive speaks volumes of what this team needs. Even an average quarterback could be a better facilitator of a talented roster with guys like Garrett Wilson at receiver. Wilson is not average. Far from it.
Moving forward, it’ll be hard to believe Wilson plays for the Jets again this season. Quite frankly, it’s hard to believe him ever starting for the Jets again, now having wasted two shots to prove himself. High draft status or not, you have to deliver at some point. You only get an extended leash for so long before patience runs thin.
Whether the Jets and Saleh can salvage anything out of what is an otherwise mostly solid squad moving forward, having very likely missed on a No. 2 overall pick, is a different question. Most squads don’t recover from such massive blunders, having built their entire operation around that QB’s hopeful success. Maybe an experienced veteran signal-caller (Tom Brady?) is the move in the offseason, but that’s never a sure thing.
The Jets benched Zach Wilson again on Thursday night, knowing full well what that might say about their plans and long-term prospects. The full and costly ramifications of what it means for the franchise’s future moving forward are likely only beginning.
NFL fans were ruthless to Zach Wilson after his awful TNF performance and benching
zach wilson is easily one of the worst draft picks in this century of football
— charles (praying for ridder) mcdonald (@FourVerts) December 23, 2022
That might’ve been it for Zach Wilson in a Jets uniform tbh. They were out there playing a flag football QB over him in a do-or-die game.
— Khari Thompson (@kdthompson5) December 23, 2022
Zach Wilson needs to get out of the NFL and back to his true calling: trying to shut down the nerdy-but-fun-loving fraternity next door
— Jason Schreier (@jasonschreier) December 23, 2022
Jets fans in this century never felt this bad about their QB play with Mark Sanchez, Geno Smith or Sam Darnold. Zach Wilson is truly the worst we’ve seen.
— Sean Fennessey (@SeanFennessey) December 23, 2022
On the bright side, this is the last time Zach Wilson ever starts a game for the Jets.
— Dan Hanzus (@DanHanzus) December 23, 2022
sometimes I manage to forget for a day or two that the Jets picked Zach Wilson instead of Justin Fields but this tweet just reminded me again https://t.co/amhJe1z2r2
— Rodger Sherman (@rodger) December 23, 2022
Are we sure Zach Wilson is better than Nathan Peterman?
— kyle (@knicks_tape99) December 23, 2022
I just don’t understand how Zach Wilson got drafted second overall and no one batted an eye.
— Ben Axelrod (@BenAxelrod) December 23, 2022
The Jets have three points in this game, which is also how many points they would have if I were starting at quarterback instead of Zach Wilson
— Benjamin Solak (@BenjaminSolak) December 23, 2022
Zach Wilson really going to go down as one of the biggest QB busts in NFL history.
Man.
— The Jet Press (@TheJetPress) December 23, 2022
The NFL is going to watch the Zach Wilson experience, then draft Will Levis ahead of CJ Stroud and Bryce Young. Wild.
— Vance Meek (@vancemeek) December 23, 2022
there's no coming back from benching zach wilson for chris streveler. like, i didn't think they could come back to wilson after the mike white thing but this is for sure it
— Robby Kalland (@RKalland) December 23, 2022
this is basically the reason why the Jets drafted Zach Wilson pic.twitter.com/qylGvvQcRu
— Grace (@ballerstatzz) December 23, 2022
