New York Jets quarterback Zach Wilson is doing everything in his power to make the next step in his development ahead of the 2022 season.
On top of all of the organized activities, he traveled around the country working out with teammates, organized a passing camp for July, is participating in Tight End University, and has caught the eye of one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL.
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A Good Guy to Have in Your Corner
Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated recently did a deep dive into Wilson taking the next step and shared some observations.
After the Week 1 debut versus the Carolina Panthers, Wilson called up Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers.
“That Friday night of Week 2, he and Rodgers were catching up over the phone, and Rodgers asked what he was doing. Wilson responded that he was at the facility looking at tape. Rodgers’s response? Roughly, Dude, what are you doing? Wilson’s work was admirable of course, but trying to do too much too fast wound up becoming a problem.”
Breer noted if he was a fan of the Jets he would feel “pretty good” about the spot Wilson is in right now based on how the season ended.
During the offseason, Mike LaFleur and Rob Calabrese went to work cutting down the “volume” of the playbook to make things cleaner.
The dynamic duo found too many plays that were ineffective last season and decided to cut them out of the playbook heading into 2022.
Breer did a really good job explaining how they simplified things and reiterated what this Shanahan offense is all about to Wilson:
“And part of that would mean really showing Wilson how simple the system could be, and how, if there were 60 concepts, really, those concepts probably fit into six buckets, with 10 calls in each being very similar to the next (with variations in formations, personnel grouping, etc. to throw the defense off).
From there, the coaches made it so, if in a single practice, Wilson ran, say, 12 plays, the 12 included two from each of the six buckets, to reinforce that he’s really running a total of six plays, with the next practice including two different plays from each of the six buckets.”
A Matchup to Circle on the Schedule
Wilson first developed a relationship with Rodgers during the pre-draft process as he was honing in on which agency he was going to sign with.
Aaron Rodgers on Zach Wilson:
“Zach’s a good kid, it was fun to see him. I got to talk to him various times throughout the offseason”
Then during the 2021 preseason, the two got a chance to chat during joint practices ahead of the Jets-Packers game.
This year that exhibition game will become a real quarterback battle.
In Week 6 the Jets will travel to Lambeau for a matchup with Rodgers and the Packers. It will be an opportunity to see if the student can trade blows with the master.
It is still early but Green Bay is a 9.5-point favorite right now in Vegas and an 82.3 percent favorite according to the ESPN Football Power Index analytics.
Learning from the best.
Rodgers’ resume speaks for itself as a four-time NFL MVP and Super Bowl champion. While Wilson is still unproven as a second-year player and has much to live up to in 2022.
On top of that, you have all of the other connective tissue with Matt LaFleur and Mike LaFleur facing off. Then you have Robert Saleh’s connection to both brothers.
All-in-all you have the makings of what could be a really fun game if this Jets offense can live up to the hype.
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4-Time NFL MVP Has Taken Jets QB Zach Wilson Under His Wing