Zach Wilson hasn’t been great through the first five games of his NFL career.
Wilson is among the league’s worst in a number of statistical categories. He leads the NFL with nine interceptions, is 27th in passing yards, tied for 28th in passing touchdowns, 31st in completion percentage and 32nd in quarterback ranking.
Not all of this has been Wilson’s fault, though. Blocking issues, drops by receivers and uncreative playcalling haven’t helped the rookie this season. But some of those problems have been solved, meaning that whatever mistakes Wilson continues to make will start to fall on his shoulders.
It’s not too late for Wilson to correct the problems that have plagued him and the Jets this season. He’s still young and this offense is still new. But after five games, aspects of Wilson’s game need refinement.
Here’s our assessment of Wilson through the first five games of his career.
Interception woes
(Alastair Grant-AP)
First and foremost, Wilson needs to cut down on the interceptions. He leads the league with nine and has thrown at least one in every outing this season. Some of the turnovers weren’t necessarily errant throws by Wilson, but a lot of them were certainly ill-advised given the coverages he faced. This issue is a combination of decision-making and field awareness.
Wilson must learn that he doesn’t need to make every throw if it’s not there. Forcing passes isn’t the answer when you’re in a hole. Sometimes it’s better to throw it away, check down to your underneath routes or concede the drive rather than turn the ball over.
Boring football
(Frank Franklin II-AP)
This is the phrase Jets fans will remember most from the first five weeks of the season. Robert Saleh wants Wilson to play “boring football” by making routine throws rather than always looking to air it out. Wilson is getting better at this, as Saleh said in Week 4, but there are moments he still looks for the deep shot downfield.
Wilson needs to complete the boring throws if he wants to be successful – something he failed to do a few times against the Falcons in Week 5. This issue at least appears as though it’s getting better.
Deep shots
(Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports)
Prior to Thursday Night Football this week, Wilson ranked ninth in intended air yards with 1,531 and 11th in completed air yards with 728. This is strange because the other quarterbacks near Wilson all play in offenses that rank top-10 in passing yards. So while Wilson is throwing downfield, he’s not turning those throws into scoring drives.
Wilson has a big arm – everybody knows that – but he needs to be able to use that arm to make meaningful throws that lead to points. Until that happens, the deep shots are just empty calories.
Decision-making
(Matthew Stockman-Getty Images)
Everything boils down to decision-making for the quarterback. Making the right throws at the right time leads to positive plays. Right now, that’s not happening for Wilson on a couple of fronts.
Wilson will lock in on a receiver too many times on any given snap, which leads to turnovers, sacks or dropped passes. Those will happen, but eventually, Wilson needs to go through his progressions to sustain drives for the Jets. Failure to do so can quickly unravel a season and a quarterback’s mindset. Until Wilson becomes better at this, the Jets offense won’t progress much further.
Leadership
(Steve Luciano-AP)
Knock Wilson for his production all you want, but the kid has proven to be a solid leader early in his career. He commands the huddle, pumps up his teammates and takes responsibility after games even when it’s unwarranted.
His coaching staff and teammates have been behind him through all the mistakes and Wilson genuinely looks like a captain for this team. The development will come, but this part of the job seems natural for the young quarterback.
