With Aaron Rodgers set to reclaim his job as the New York Jets’ starting quarterback, now general manager Joe Douglas has to decide what to do with Zach Wilson. The former No. 2 overall pick is entering the final year of his contract, and his play didn’t exactly provide inspiration that he can be a franchise QB in the near future either.
It doesn’t help that team owner Woody Johnson already said that the Jets “didn’t have a backup” QB last season, despite Wilson’s presence. In other words, expect the Jets to seek out a different backup this offseason. If/once they acquire a backup for Rodgers, Wilson could very well be traded or cut. Yet, one NFL insider is skeptical of the Jets’ ability to trade Wilson elsewhere this offseason. Here’s why.
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Zach Wilson’s salary could make trade difficult for New York Jets
On one hand, there’s no need to ‘give up’ on Zach Wilson this offseason. While he hasn’t shown signs of a breakout performance, he’s also still just 24, and has plenty of time to figure things out in the pros.
Yet, with Wilson in the last year of his contract, if the Jets can get anything for their former first-round pick, it’s better than losing him for nothing next offseason in free agency. Plus, a team can never have enough competent QBs and there’s always the possibility he comes back as a much-improved player in 2024.
However, there’s a great sense of doubt that the Jets can even get anything worthwhile for Wilson. The latest skeptic comes from NBC’s Mike Florio, who suggests the Jets may have to pay part of Wilson’s salary just to get him off the roster.
“Unless the Jets will be picking up most of Wilson’s fully-guaranteed compensation package for 2024, the Jets will be stuck with him. They’ll have to eventually cut him or keep him — and pay him more than $5.4 million in 2024.”
Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio on challenges of trading Zach Wilson
Set to have a cap hit of $11.1 million next season, Wilson is an expensive backup, and teams may not be eager to pay that price for a player who hasn’t shown he’s capable of leading a winning effort. We should learn more about his fate soon enough.
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