Zach Wilson Gives Jets the Tiniest Sliver of Hope in Relief of Aaron Rodgers

New York’s defense and special teams did most of the heavy lifting in the team’s Monday night win over Buffalo. But Wilson still did enough to beat a Super Bowl contender.

Zach Wilson wisely made the right decision to stay in contact with Aaron Rodgers after the two quarterbacks met for the first time in 2021 during a joint practice between the Jets and Packers—long before Rodgers thought about leaving Green Bay for New York.

If Wilson hadn’t developed a friendship with Rodgers, he’d probably be on a different team right now to avoid the awkwardness of a former first-round pick being replaced after only two seasons. But Rodgers has vouched for Wilson, boldly saying he wanted to start for the Jets for a few years before handing it right back to Wilson for the next 15 years for a “special 18-to-20-year run.”

No one wanted to see Rodgers go down with what appears to be an injured Achilles four plays into his regular-season Jets debut. But the unfortunate situation and his glowing endorsement for Wilson set the stage for one of the wildest Monday Night Football games in recent memory.

Wilson was a hero, even though he didn’t do the heavy lifting in the thrilling 22–16 overtime victory against the Bills at MetLife Stadium. After the devastating loss of Rodgers, the Jets stayed in the game courtesy of four takeaways from the defense, Garrett Wilson’s acrobatic game-tying touchdown, Breece Hall’s dynamic runs and the game-winning 65-yard punt return touchdown by Hard Knocks favorite Xavier Gipson.

Rodgers’s QB succession plan wasn’t realistic, but that’s the beauty of the unpredictable moments that occur on a football field. And yes, the Jets are still waiting to find out whether they’ll have Rodgers on the field this season—Jets coach Robert Saleh told reporters the prognosis is “not good”—but they at least know they can compete with Zach Wilson as their starting quarterback.

The former No. 2 overall draft pick completed 66.7% of his passes on Monday night after entering the game with a 55.2% completion rate through the first two seasons of his career :: Seth Wenig/AP

Rodgers was right to vouch for the Jets to keep Wilson. It’s not easy coming into a game when most people in attendance are expecting the worst from the backup replacing the future Hall of Famer. It’s even more daunting trying to inspire confidence in a team playing behind a poor offensive line that allowed constant pressure against a stout Bills defense.

But there was Wilson brushing off a rocky performance—one he couldn’t have expected to have so early on this season—and capitalizing on the four takeaways provided by the Jets’ defense that has the makings of being a special unit in 2023.

Even Wilson’s touchdown pass to Garrett Wilson wasn’t pretty, but he allowed the star wideout to make a play for the game-tying touchdown late in the fourth quarter. The No. 2 pick in the 2021 draft might not be ready to be a full-time starter—remember, Rodgers said a few years—but his heroics during the fourth quarter of the AFC East clash suggest he’s ready to be a reliable backup quarterback in the NFL. Wilson finished 14-of-21 for 140 yards, one touchdown and one interception.

If Wilson is asked to start going forward, the Jets have the defense and offensive playmakers, including running backs Hall and Dalvin Cook, to withstand a few bad throws from Wilson each game. Surviving in such a manner obviously becomes less enticing if Rodgers is ruled out for the season, but New York showed Monday it could be done against a top AFC contender. 

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Rodgers had the right idea of providing a long-term QB plan for the Jets, but it’s never that easy, especially not for this franchise. Maybe for the Packers, who are off to a strong start in the Jordan Love era after having Rodgers and Brett Favre start the previous 30 years.

With Rodgers being carted to the locker room and later being seen with a walking boot on his left leg before being ruled out with an ankle injury, the Jets again turned to Wilson, who’s been benched multiple times in his young career.

Jets coach Robert Saleh and his players may not have had enough time to analyze the drop-off between Rodgers and Wilson. Then again, it doesn’t take that long to realize that. Regardless, the Jets couldn’t afford to dwell on it with almost the entirety of their season opener still ahead of them.

The sad Jets fans in the stands certainly thought about the possibility of their favorite team’s offense being led by Wilson and offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett for most of the 2023 season. Like Wilson, Hackett probably wouldn’t be with the Jets had he not formed a tight bond with Rodgers during their three successful seasons together in Green Bay, which included back-to-back MVP seasons for Rodgers with Hackett as the offensive coordinator.

But with most dire situations, there are usually waves of positivity that come rushing before one is reminded of the harsh reality.

Maybe Wilson doesn’t need a few years of sitting. Maybe he learned enough from Rodgers this summer to be a starter again. Maybe Hackett wasn’t to blame for the mess that occurred in Denver under his watch.

Those what-ifs quickly evaporated for most Jets fans after Wilson threw a terrible interception to Bills linebacker Matt Milano late in the second quarter. A disgruntled Jets fan was briefly shown on the ESPN broadcast aiming a middle finger to the field after Wilson’s turnover.

Wilson struggled with accuracy and forced throws, though his offensive line did him no favors against a ferocious Bills defense. Wilson and the Jets managed to hang around due to Jordan Whitehead’s three interceptions of Josh Allen.

It’s an awkward situation for Wilson to be playing again for the Jets, but credit to Saleh’s defense for keeping it a one-score game to allow Wilson to have his heroic moment in the fourth quarter. Nothing was pretty about Monday, even the game-winning punt return with a few questionable blocks.

But the Jets found a way with Wilson, a stellar defensive performance and many unpredictable moments. Perhaps that’s all it takes for Gang Green to have a magical season.