Getty New York Jets quarterback Zach Wilson evading the rush versus the Buffalo Bills.
The New York Jets haven’t been to the Super Bowl in over 53 years. Gang Green hasn’t won a divisional title since 2002.
Both of those milestones were a long time ago and they feel even longer ago than they actually were. With only one winning season in the last 11 years, those goals in today’s world seem like a pipe dream.
However, one national insider left the door open to dreaming the impossible dream.
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Head in the Clouds
On Saturday, July 30 the NFL got the hashtag ‘Back Together Saturday’ trending. It was a league-wide initiative welcoming back fans at training camps across the country.
All of the major networks helped with those efforts by sending insiders to several training camps including the Jets.
ESPN’s Dianna Russini got a chance to speak with team reporter Caroline Hendershot for a few minutes and spoke about the improvement of Zach Wilson and expectations for 2022:
“All signs point up but at the same time, there is a realistic idea here in New York that there just needs to be improvement. He doesn’t need to go out there and try to win a Super Bowl even though I know Jets fans would just love that and maybe it could happen, it could happen.”
.@diannaESPN said the #Jets are really happy with Zach Wilson’s (@ZachWilson) progress + ‘he doesn’t need to go out there & try to win the #SuperBowl even though I know NYJ fans would love that & maybe it could happen’ 👀 🎥 @nyjets @cghendy #TakeFlight #JetsCamp
Russini was then asked where the Jets stand in the AFC East hierarchy and she provided some optimism:
“That is what’s interesting. They have the opportunity here to really pick up some steam and make a difference and actually land at the top.”
Now she made her stance clear that she has the Bills winning the Super Bowl this season, but noted her history with predictions is incredibly spotty.
Doing the Mundane
So far in training camp, there has been some up-and-down with Wilson.
Although perhaps the biggest takeaway is Wilson getting better at doing the mundane tasks of an NFL quarterback.
The former BYU passer made a ton of splash plays last year but was often outweighed by the abysmal 55.6 percent completion percentage.
Some of that was attributed to his receivers and running backs dropping the ball, but most of it fell on Wilson’s shoulders. He needs to just complete the pass and get the ball moving.
Wilson said as much during media availability when asked what needs to change for him to fix those accuracy issues.
“Well, I think it is an understanding of the offense. Really I don’t think it is something mechanically that needs to be changed. I feel like I’ve always been able to throw the ball. When you understand where to go with the ball and you have that confidence you’re able to be accurate because you’re confident in where you’re going with the ball.”
Wilson also said the other key is “finding completions.”
He said with that mentality sometimes you’ll miss the deeper option, but as long as you’re finding completions you’re doing the right thing.
In other words, not every play is going to be a home run. The best hitters in baseball miss 7 out of every 10 whacks at the ball. It is important to just keep hitting singles and doubles, eventually, those will open up opportunities on the backend of the defense to hit a play.
Wilson isn’t afraid of taking a risk, as long as it is the right play to make. If he is able to take this thought process in training camp to the football field this could make a major difference in 2022.
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