2021 NFL Mock Draft: Zach Wilson rises to Jets at No. 2 in 3-round projection

The New York Jets have an interesting situation ahead of them. They own several premium picks over the course of the next few seasons as well as plenty of cap space. The problem is, they’ve done so much damage to their own image in recent years due to poor play and mismanagement of start players — plus they hired Adam Gase who no player in the NFL seems to like a couple of seasons ago — which will make it hard to convince players they can be happy with New York.

Thankfully, they can point to the fact that they finally have a coach that players seem to like. Robert Saleh was hired this offseason, and the former San Francisco 49ers defensive coordinator might have been the best hire of the offseason. He’s an excellent play-caller and teacher on the defensive side of the ball and commands respect from his players.

Another thing that could help them lure and keep talent would be landing a legit franchise quarterback. Here at No. 2, they do that — despite having Sam Darnold under contract. The question is who do they grab between Zach Wilson and Justin Fields. This is one that might not be as easy as it seems. Fields has been a known commodity longer but Wilson has some elite traits that are hard to overlook.

In the end, we go with Wilson here as the BYU products extreme arm talent ends up being too much to pass on. He’s also still improving as a player and could be even better in the pros than he was in college. Now, they just need to figure out what to do with Darnold who suddenly finds himself in need of a fresh start.