The Zach Wilson era is here: Separating reality from spin

Zach is back.

That sentence might make some Jets fans throw up in their mouths, but that is reality now.

Coach Robert Saleh made it clear Tuesday that in the wake of Aaron Rodgers’ season-ending Achilles injury, Zach Wilson will be the Jets’ starting quarterback for the foreseeable future.

“This is Zach’s team, and we are rolling with Zach,” Saleh said.

Saleh spent most of his 13-minute Zoom call with reporters pumping Wilson up like he was a balloon in the Thanksgiving Day Parade.

“From a mental standpoint, he’s so much different than this time a year ago,” Saleh said. “He’s in a great frame of mind, he’s loving the game of football, he’s loving the process that he’s going through. He’s got a lot of confidence.”

Saleh sounded like a used car salesman.

Here is the reality: there is no reason to believe Wilson has improved until we actually see some proof.

There is no doubt that Wilson’s attitude seems better than last year. Losing his hold on the starting job seems to have humbled him. Rodgers’ influence has helped him off the field. He seems more comfortable around teammates, and the cockiness that rubbed so many people the wrong way in his first two years has decreased dramatically.

That is all well and good but there have not been a lot of signs on the field that Wilson has made dramatic strides. Saleh referenced what he had done in OTAs, training camp and in the four preseason games as proof that Wilson has improved.

I was at most of those sessions that Saleh referenced. There were a few memorable throws, most notably his 57-yard pass to Malik Taylor in the Hall of Fame Game. But most of it was forgettable.

On Monday night against the Bills, Wilson looked a lot like the guy who quarterbacked the team last October. He made one bad mistake on the interception, had some questionable decisions when he decided to run backwards and overall left you uninspired with how he played.

The coaches reverted back into Wilson mode from last October, too, calling a conservative game. In the fourth quarter, they looked scared to let Wilson try anything. On the go-ahead field goal drive, the Jets dialed up seven running plays, including one on third-and-12. The Jets got the field goal, but they could have taken a shot at the end zone for a touchdown that most likely would have sealed the game, forcing the Bills to go 75 yards with just one timeout rather than being able to kick a 50-yard field goal to force overtime.

Then, there is how Wilson is perceived in the locker room. Wilson’s teammates clearly tired of him last year after his poor performance on the field and at the postgame podium in New England.

“I think he’s been able to rebuild rapport with his teammates and just the way he’s kind of handled himself has been fantastic, but everything about him is so much different than a year ago,” Saleh said.

Saleh later asked to correct the word “rapport” to “confidence.”

Jets teammates will be a lot like Jets fans when it comes to Wilson this time around. If he helps the team win, everyone will forget his first two seasons. If he falls on his face again, this could turn ugly quickly.

This will be Wilson’s third run at being QB1 for the Jets. He was given a lot of leash as a rookie and then last year after he returned from injury. When Mike White was injured in December, Wilson was given another shot to help the Jets reach the playoffs. Instead, he played terribly in his second start against the Jaguars and was booed viciously by Jets fans and benched for Chris Streveler.

That game was the final straw for the Jets, and they knew they had to move on from the No. 2 overall pick in the 2021 draft and that ended up leading to the Rodgers trade.

There was always a feeling that Wilson may have play again for the Jets but no one expected it to come five plays into the first game of this season.

Wilson has another shot to rewrite his NFL story. This may be his final shot to be a starting quarterback. The Jets are going to give him a runway here to show what he can do. If he stumbles, the Jets may have to turn to whatever veteran quarterback they add to be Wilson’s backup.

Zach is back. We’ll see for how long.