Broncos Can't Make This Mistake With QB Zach Wilson

The Denver Broncos can't screw this up.

Jul 26, 2024; Englewood, CO, USA; Denver Broncos quarterback Zach Wilson (4) during training camp at Broncos Park Powered by CommonSpirit. / Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports

Since Peyton Manning's retirement, the Denver Broncos have been in dire need of a stable franchise quarterback, seeing a revolving door of 13 different starters.

The possibility of a 14th starting quarterback is on the horizon in the form of rookie first-rounder Bo Nix. However, another potential contender for this role is Zach Wilson.

With training camp underway, some reports have mentioned Wilson as having the best day. In contrast, others have disputed this with reports of him having the best play of the day a couple of times and struggling to be consistent in all phases. 

So, is Wilson the long-awaited solution to the Broncos' quarterback problem? 

The answer is no, but it's complex. Never say never, as Wilson could potentially fill the role, but entrusting him with this crucial position would be a monumental mistake for the Broncos' decision-makers. 

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While it's true that Wilson has the most on-field experience of the three Broncos quarterbacks, but that experience isn't good. He was a former No. 2 overall pick by the New York Jets, but his play on the field was so bad they were fine accepting the equivalent of a ham sandwich in return for Wilson via trade just to get him off their plate. 

As a starter, Wilson led the Jets to a 12-21 record, throwing 23 touchdowns to 25 interceptions over three seasons. Last year, he had the lowest passing success rate at 36.5%, and while many want to point to coaching, his career's highest pass success rate was 37.7%, which never ranked higher than the third lowest. 

Coaching plays a part, especially since Nathaniel Hackett presided over Russell Wilson's career-low passing success rate in 2022. Hackett followed that up by coaching Zach last year. However, Zach's previous two seasons show that he was playing terribly long before Hackett arrived in New York. 

When you look at other advanced statistics for quarterbacks, especially the key metrics that best reveal success in the NFL, Wilson has ranked in the bottom five in each of his three seasons. Wilson has a history of being a bad quarterback, and rolling with him as a starter in Denver and expecting a sudden change would be a mistake. 

It's extremely rare for a quarterback with more than 20 starts and three accrued NFL seasons to suddenly turn it around, let alone become great. The NFL has never seen such a quarterback turnaround.

However, what would make going with Wilson as a starter an even bigger mistake has nothing to do with him. It's about that first-round 24-year-old Nix.

Denver needs Nix out on the field as a rookie to find out what it has in him and try to build a competitive team, taking full advantage of that rookie contract. If Nix is successful, the Broncos will likely have to extend him in three or four years for an average salary of $60-plus million per year. 

The Broncos selected Nix with the 12th overall pick. That's a large investment, and the team can’t afford to sit and wait on him.

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