Week 16 Loss to Jaguars the Final Straw for Zach Wilson

There weren’t a ton of yards to be had out there for the Jets passing game on Thursday Night. But there were still opportunities that Zach Wilson failed to take advantage of that could have made a difference in the outcome of the game. More concerning is that the mistakes he made against the Jaguars were the same types of mistakes he’s made in just about every start of his NFL career. That’s ultimately why his days as a Jet, and as an NFL starting quarterback, appear to be numbered a mere 22 games into his career.

The ugliness began on New York’s first 3rd down of the game. This was a golden opportunity to score a touchdown after they recovered a fumble deep in Jaguars territory. To be fair, the design by Jacksonville’s defense was really good. Initially, it looked like someone would be blitzing from Wilson’s left:

Due to the blitz look and the alignment of the defensive tackle in the A-gap to the center’s right, the Jets used a 4-man slide to account for the potential pressure:

That meant right tackle George Fant would be in a man-to-man situation with defensive end Josh Allen:

But the Jaguars wouldn’t be bringing pressure from Wilson’s left. Safety Rayshawn Jenkins, initially part of the blitz look, dropped back to the middle of the field. Safety Andre Cisco would then drop down on the other side of the formation and end up blitzing instead:

Given that Fant was tied up with Allen, there was no one to account for Cisco, which meant he was the quarterback’s responsibility. Wilson would need to throw hot or at least account for him in some way. Instead he looked left, waited for his receivers to get open with no urgency, and was completely unaware of the blitzing Cisco: