New York Jets rookie quarterback Zach Wilson completely imploded in his second professional start vs the New England Patriots.
The former BYU stud tossed four interceptions and his team fell 25-6 in Week 2.
How he answers adversity in Week 3 is one of the biggest storylines to watch in this matchup vs the Denver Broncos on Sunday.
While Gang Green is hoping they can have a different result, members of the Denver defense feel quite differently.
ALL the latest Jets news straight to your inbox! Join the Heavy on Jets newsletter here!
The Rookie QB Is on Notice
Things won’t get any easier as the Jets are set to hit the road vs the Broncos. It’ll be their home opener where fans will make their return for the first time in two years.
If the atmosphere wasn’t enough, Denver is actually really good, one of only two undefeated teams in the entire conference.
“We don’t want to be the team that gets him (Zach Wilson) out of his slump,” Broncos safety Justin Simmons to the media. “We want to make sure the team after us says we want to keep taking advantage of that [four turnovers].”
#Broncos safety Justin Simmons (@jsimms1119) says they’re ‘hoping to take advantage’ of #Jets rookie QB Zach Wilson’s (@ZachWilson) interception issues from last week + ‘we definitely want to give our fans a show’: #BroncosCountry #TakeFlight
Simmons is looking forward to giving all the Broncos fans a “show” and those comments came off of a question about Wilson’s slew of turnovers from the New England game. The Denver defense has officially put Wilson on notice that they plan on doing the same exact thing to him.
Although it’ll be in a much different way than the Patriots.
Denver primarily runs a zone defense and doesn’t blitz nearly as often as other teams in the NFL. The key for Wilson will be making sure he understands what he sees both pre-snap and post-snap so he doesn’t cough up any more big turnovers.
Despite the Broncos not having a full deck heading into this one (several players on injured reserve):
- Ronald Darby
- Bradley Chubb
- Jerry Jeudy
Denver has incredible depth at all of those positional groups and are one of the most feared overall units in the league.
It’s Going to Be a Thing Until It Isn’t
The vegas line opened with the Jets as an 11 point underdog, it has settled at 10.5 as of Saturday morning. According to the FPI (Football Power Index) analytics, the Broncos are a 76.9 percent favorite to come away victorious.
Denver and every defense is going to be licking their chops at a rookie quarterback who is coming off of that kind of performance.
It’s up to Wilson to pick himself up and put that outing in the past. Regardless of what happens throughout this season, a short-term memory is going to be paramount.
The four-interception horrific performance has to be put in the past. Even if a multi-touchdown game comes, the same mentality is important, enjoy it then put it in the ground. You can’t ride too high or too low.
The Jets will likely help him out with the game plan by not putting too much on him. Last week the Gang Green running game was working, the offensive line did a great job of protecting, and the defense seemed to be firing on all cylinders.
For Wilson, it’s simple, play within yourself.
The Jets fell in love with his ability to make big-time plays and they would still love those to happen, but they also have to make sure he doesn’t try to do too much. Last week it seemed pretty evident that he was putting too much on his own plate and Wilson lost himself in that.
Follow @BoyGreen25 & @obermuller_nyj on Twitter for all the latest New York Jets breaking news, rumors, fresh takes and more!
READ NEXT: Talented Jets WR Featured in Compelling Trade Proposal
Comments
Broncos Put Jets QB Zach Wilson on Notice