Zach Wilson's two TD passes lead Jets past Packers

GREEN BAY — With each passing game, Zach Wilson is showing he’s ready for regular-season action.

The rookie quarterback was nearly flawless Saturday, leading three Jets scoring drives in four possessions. The Jets built a second-quarter lead and held on to beat the Green Bay Packers, 23-14, at Lambeau Field.

Wilson, the No. 2 overall pick in April’s NFL Draft, was 9-for-11 for 128 yards and a pair of touchdown strikes to tight end Tyler Kroft.

Jets coach Robert Saleh liked the progress he saw from his first-year quarterback in front of more than 78,000 fans in a hostile environment.

"I thought he had good command, I thought he was under control, I thought he handled pressure well," Saleh said. "He was good in and out of the huddle. He’s progressing. Just like his bad days, this was a good day, and it’s just another day, and he’s got to continue to stack up and take the good with the bad and find ways to get better."

All training camp, Saleh has talked about how Wilson has been able to stack days and have good days in practice leading up to game day. Wilson was able to do that all week and cash in when it counted.

"I think it’s part of the process," Wilson said. "Just stack this up one on another. I think it goes back to the joint practices, too. How can we just keep building off of those, good or bad. Out on the field as well, just how we just keep getting better and learning from even the good plays."

On one instance early in the game, Wilson was able to escape the pocket and show off his improvisational skills, hitting wide receiver Corey Davis with a nice pass.

Wilson is starting to feel loose and know when he can play a little backyard football.

"It’s just understanding when to do it,’’ he said, "and that’s what I’m still working on is understanding when it’s good to leave the pocket, like in that instance, and find somebody down the field, and kind of when you need to take a shot and buy a little time in the pocket and still deliver a good ball. It’s finding that balance, and I think as we just keep playing more games, we’ll be able to figure that out."

The Jets gave up 278 total yards to the Packers — which didn’t dress quarterback Aaron Rodgers along with 31 of his teammates — but didn’t allow a point in the second half.

SEE PHOTOSPhotos: Jets vs. Packers preseason

The Jets forced two interceptions and one fumble and didn’t commit a turnover.

"There’s some things we want to fix, some things that we have to go on, and we understand that there’s a level of play that we want to keep, so once we get home, we’ll look at the film and we’ll iron those things out," Jets defensive lineman Folorunso Fatukasi said.

With the Jets up 3-0, the defense got tested on the Packers’ opening drive. Green Bay running back Kylin Hill took a handoff and John Franklin-Myers dived and missed the tackle. Hill raced into the end zone for a 12-yard touchdown.

On the Jets’ third drive, Wilson started to heat up. He hit Davis on back-to-back completions of 14 and 27 yards to get to the Packers’ 16. Two plays later, Wilson found Kroft wide open on a seam route for an 18-yard touchdown to put the Jets up 10-7. Wilson was 3-for-4 on the drive for 59 yards.

The Packers responded with a 19-play, 81-yard drive as quarterback Kurt Benkert hit tight end Jace Sternberger to take the lead back.

The Jets’ Corey Ballentine returned the ensuing kickoff 73 yards to the 30 to set up Wilson. On the third play, he again connected with Kroft, who released from the line, broke a couple of tackles after the catch and wound up with an 18-yard touchdown.

That was Wilson’s last series with less than two minutes to play in the opening half.

The Jets’ starting offense put up 17 points on four drives.

"I think it was good building off of what we had rolling from Week 1," said Kroft, who finished with two catches — both touchdowns — for 36 yards. "It’s always good to take a step forward. Obviously, as a unit, there’s going to be stuff that we need to clean up. I know some of the certain situation stuff was third down or short yardage. I know as a team we want to take a step forward in that. But overall, I thought it was a good job today."

Backup quarterback Mike White led back-to-back second-half drives that resulted in field goals to pad the Jets’ lead.

Notes & quotes: Jets linebacker Jarrad Davis got hurt early in the second quarter and was carted to the locker room. "The initial prognosis is positive, but again, he’s got to get it looked at deeper," Saleh said. Offensive lineman Conor McDermott hurt his knee in the second quarter and didn’t return, and quarterback White left the game late in the third with a rib injury. Ronald Blair (hamstring) and Ballentine (knee) also were injured . . . With Carl Lawson lost for the season with an Achilles tear, the Jets started Franklin-Myers and Bryce Huff at defensive end.