Three years ago, a contingent of New York Jets coaches, executives and scouts flew to Utah to watch Zach Wilson sling it all over the field at BYU’s pro day. The group included general manager Joe Douglas, head coach Robert Saleh and offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur. They thought they found the future face of the Jets franchise and to some in the organization, the decision to pick him with the No. 2 pick felt like an easy one.
Fast forward three years, and the Jets had to pay another team to take Wilson off their hands. The Jets traded Wilson to the Denver Broncos ahead of the NFL Draft, sending Wilson and a seventh-round pick (No. 256) to the Broncos for a sixth-round pick (No. 203) on Monday, according to a league source.
It officially marks the end of a disastrous saga where Wilson statistically had one of the worst starts to a career of any highly-drafted quarterback, though the Jets organization made many mistakes along the way that cratered his development. That started with the decision to hand him the role of QB1 as a rookie without even the illusion of competition — and then not bringing in any real competition once Aaron Rodgers tore his Achilles in Week 1 last season.
It was an active offseason for quarterback movement and the Jets didn’t receive much interest in Wilson, hence why it took this long to trade him — and why the return was so small. Earlier in the offseason, other Wilson draft classmates from 2021 changed teams, Justin Fields going to the Steelers for a conditional sixth-round pick and Mac Jones getting sent to the Jaguars for a sixth too. Jaguars’ Trevor Lawrence is the only first-round quarterback from that draft class remaining with his original team.
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