The 2022 football season has already provided several surprises. Some of the biggest include Zach Wilson‘s New York Jets sitting at 4-2, as well as Russell Wilson struggling to lead the Denver Broncos to victory. On Sunday, the two units collide for a Week 7 battle, with both franchises heading in very different directions.
New York’s Wilson has yet to lose a start this season, going 3-0 against Pittsburgh, Miami, and Green Bay while averaging 30.3 points per game. The Broncos? Well, their Wilson can’t find out how to turn the stove on, as Denver averages a league-worst 15.2 points per game.
Prior to the season’s start, most would have penciled this game in as a win for the Broncos, but now that we’ve seen both teams’ performances as of late, it’s actually the Jets who should be feeling more confident heading into Empower Field at Mile High.
Zach Wilson’s ready to make a name for himself in Denver
- Zach Wilson stats in 2022: 56% comp. rate, 572 passing yards, 1 TD, 2 INT
Since becoming the second overall pick in 2021, Wilson has started just 16 games in his NFL career, not even a full season by modern standards. After taking Gang Green to a 3-10 record a season ago, Wilson has yet to lose in this year’s campaign. Jets fans are thrilled to have a 4-2 record, but Wilson has yet to have that signature game letting the NFL know he’s arrived in his second NFL season.
Instead, it’s been New York’s running game that’s fueled the Jets’ success. Wilson hasn’t topped 252 passing yards in his three starts, but he’s taking sacks at a lower rate than he did as a rookie (6.3% compared to 10.3%). This is great, considering Wilson lost more yards (-370) on sacks than any other player a season ago. If this trend holds up, Wilson could be looking at a big breakout year.
Wilson will be taking on a passing defense that ranks fifth in the NFL, allowing just 184.5 passing yards per game, thanks to a secondary that features one of the top rising stars in football, with cornerback Patrick Surtain II. Wilson’s weapons will have to win their one-on-one battles downfield, but they certainly have the speed and size to do so.
Garrett Wilson ran a 4.38 40-yard dash at the NFL Scouting Combine, and Corey Davis (6-foot-3), gives Wilson both a speed threat and a tall target, even if his aim is a bit off deep downfield. It’s the NFL, so it won’t ever be easy, there will always be a blue-chip prospect on the other side of the ball, but Wilson himself has the potential to become one of the best young quarterbacks in football. That opportunity is squarely in front of the 23-year-old QB on Sunday.
Related: New York Giants and Jets rebuilds are ahead of schedule after stunning upset wins in Week 6
Russell Wilson – Ready to ride Broncos into another loss
- Russell Wilson stats in 2022: 58.6% comp. rate, 1,442 passing yards, 5 TD, 3 INT
Where did the Russell Wilson we saw with the Seattle Seahawks go? Suddenly Wilson not only has seemingly lost a few steps, he no longer has his fastball. Wilson’s just a tenth of a yard away from averaging his career low per attempt and is finding the end zone at a career-low rate (2.5% of his throws). Plus, Wilson used to have incredible awareness that helped him become such a respected leader league-wide, but he’s missed several wide-open receivers, leading to even more criticism.
While quarterbacks will never be perfect, missed opportunities will always exist in some form, but Wilson’s examples have come with the game on the line. Past versions of Wilson would have had no trouble finding the open man, extending plays with his feet, or making clutch throws to put the team on his back. Only, we haven’t seen any version of such QB in Denver.
Making matters worse, Wilson reportedly suffered a hamstring injury in Denver’s overtime loss to the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 6. Now, Wilson finds himself in another tough situation as a true game-time decision heading into Sunday’s matchup. If Wilson isn’t anywhere close to 100%, it just doesn’t make sense for the Broncos to let their $242 million QB suit up, no matter how bout the optics look from the outside.
Related: Where does Russell Wilson rank in this year’s NFL QB rankings?