New York Jets: Zach Wilson has sound reasoning for camp struggles

Zach Wilson hasn’t drawn the best reviews in New York Jets training camp thus far but, if you ask the rookie quarterback, he has a good reason for it.

Anyone keeping up with the New York Jets through the early parts of training camp likely knows that No. 2 overall pick and presumed franchise quarterback Zach Wilson hasn’t exactly been living up to the hype early on. Errant throws, bad turnovers and a general lack of consistency have plagued the BYU product thus far.

Even if you want to write that off as a rookie making a jump from a smaller school to the NFL, it doesn’t look great when all the reports about the other four quarterbacks selected in the first round have been exceedingly positive so far in training camp. And given the history of the Jets, the worry and possibly panic starts to set in.

Wilson, however, isn’t the least bit concerned with it. In fact, when you hear him talk about it, you’re likely to feel the same.

Speaking to the media after practice on Wednesday, Wilson talked about how taking chances in practice that he likely wouldn’t in games is how he assesses his ability and what he can do in this league:

Zach Wilson isn’t wrong in his approach and New York Jets should have faith in that.

While Jets fans would surely still like to see steadier play from Wilson in training camp before he gets into live game action, the rookie’s approach mentally makes a ton of sense. There is a big learning curve coming from college to the NFL, especially making the jump from a program like BYU.

We know the young signal-caller is loaded with talent in his arm and with his mobility. However, playing it safe all the time isn’t going to raise the ceiling fo tthe Jets for the long-haul. It’s good that he’s willing to take chances in practice to see what he’s capable of at this level, especially this early in his career. You’d much rather see that now than in games.

Having said that, with the preseason starting this week, there will be a ton of eyes on Wilson to see if he somewhat changes that approach and/or starts to turn the narrative that he’s struggling. If he comes out and looks shaky, then there is more reason for concern, far more than there is right now.

But for now, we should take the rookie quarterback’s word and, frankly, be encouraged by it. Practices matter for getting reps and getting a feel of the NFL game but it’s also a time to test limits and gauge where a player is at. It may be resulting in mistakes and woes for Wilson in camp but it could actually pay off for him in the long run.