Getty New York Jets quarterback Zach Wilson during Week 11 of the 2022 regular season.
In the NFL, everything can change in the blink of an eye.
After Week 8, New York Jets fans were ready to run Zach Wilson out of town after a three-interception performance against the New England Patriots. Then the youngster came out and had one of his best NFL outings during an upset win over Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills. All it took was another ugly Patriots loss to swing that pendulum once again, however.
Monday morning quarterbacks were out and about on November 21 after Wilson pissed off most of the Jets community with his lack of accountability during the postgame press conference in New England. Needless to say, few held back in their criticism of the second-year gunslinger.
Peter King, Rex Ryan, Dan Orlovsky & More Slam Zach Wilson After Week 11
During his “Football Morning in America” article, long-time NBC Sports writer Peter King named Wilson his “Goat of the Week,” which feels like a good place to begin.
“Two games against the Patriots this year, two awful performances by the second-year QB from Brigham Young,” King stated. “In 26 second-half plays, the Jets generated two yards. You have to try to be that miserable. Really try. But get this: Wilson had seven second-half drives. The furthest he drove the Jets was to his own 35-yard line. I watched the Jets’ post-game show on SNY in New York, and I thought Willie Colon was going to burst out into orbit, he was so enraged over the Jets’ play. (And he thinks, as I do, that Robert Saleh has to worry less about the feelings of Zach Wilson and more about winning games this year with this team, keeping in mind that benching Wilson isn’t a dumb idea.)”
Film experts Dan Orlovsky and the more Jet-centric Michael Nania also let loose on Wilson, highlighting critical errors on different passing attempts. The first one from Orlovsky questioned whether or not “the QB know[s] the playbook.”
Does the QB know the playbook @nyjets ??
Jets rookie wide receiver Garrett Wilson was visibly frustrated on this play and he had a lot to say about the offensive game plan and execution during a locker room interview on Sunday.
Nania, a former staunch defender of Wilson, actually went as far as to say that he’s “out on Zach Wilson after seeing this” video below. In the clip, the NYJ signal-caller misses a wide-open Denzel Mims for a touchdown despite looking in his direction.
I’m out on Zach Wilson after seeing this one.
Wide. Open. Denzel. Mims. Touchdown. Missed.
It got worse from there, as former Jets team leaders Rex Ryan and Damien Woody laid into Wilson for what he said after the game — rather than how he performed.
“Woke up still in disbelief at what Zach said after yesterday’s game,” Woody tweeted this morning, adding: “Only thing saving Zach Wilson right now is his draft status.”
Then on ESPN’s “Get Up,” Coach Ryan ripped Wilson during a live broadcast — shared by Antwan Staley of the New York Daily News.
Rex Ryan also with some strong comments about Zach Wilson
“This kid doesn’t get it,” Ryan voiced. “When you have a bad game [and] your team loses, as a quarterback and a leader of the team because that’s your position, you always start with ‘I’ and ‘me.’ I had a poor game. I gotta get better. I’ve got my receivers who are open, I’ve gotta deliver the ball to them. This game is on me. That’s what we’ve seen out of Jalen Hurts [and] didn’t we see that out of Josh Allen?… Kid, grow up.”
Wilson did do more of that during a one-on-one with ESPN broadcaster Bob Wischusen after the loss. “I’ve got to find a way in those conditions to go and make those throws,” the Jets QB admitted, but all it takes is one bad quote to go viral and that’s what’s happened with Wilson here this week.
#Jets QB Zach Wilson seemed to take better accountability for his erratic play w/ @espnbob in a 1-on-1 setting after the #Patriots game, ‘couldn’t pass the ball great, I’ve got to find a way in those conditions to make those throws’: 🎥 @nyjets #TakeFlight
Will Robert Saleh Stick to the Script on Zach Wilson?
It hasn’t taken long for the NFL community to turn on Wilson but has the locker room turned on him as well?
“Hearing this morning there’s a lot of raw feelings among Jets defensive players,” relayed ESPN’s Rich Cimini on November 21. “Clearly, Zach Wilson’s post-game accountability (or lack thereof) didn’t sit well.”
Star defenders John Franklin-Myers and Sauce Gardner were also caught liking tweets that portrayed they were not happy with Wilson, although “JFM” later refuted those claims.
“Jets Twitter, I ain’t mean to like that tweet!” Franklin-Myers retracted. “We got faith in Zach for sure! Y’all stop looking for problems, we got 7 games left to ball.”
Despite all this, Coach Saleh has been unwavering in his support of Wilson — which is either a firm belief or a script from the general manager that drafted him (Joe Douglas). “We [the coaches] gotta help him get better,” the Jets HC reiterated after the game.
As of now, Wilson will get the chance to redeem himself in Week 12 against the Chicago Bears.