Woody Johnson says Zach Wilson could return to Jets in 2024 season
Zach Wilson of the New York Jets against the Miami Dolphins at MetLife Stadium last November. Credit: Jim McIsaac
ORLANDO, Fla. — Zach might be back.
Woody Johnson said the Jets will not release quarterback Zach Wilson if they’re unable to trade him.
“If we don’t trade him, we’re going to keep him,” the Jets’ chairman said Monday at the NFL owners’ meetings.
“Zach is a valuable asset. He really is,” Johnson said later. “No, we’re not going to just release him. No.”
The Jets gave Wilson’s agent permission to seek a trade after the season. General manager Joe Douglas said he’s had “discussions with some teams” and that “nothing is close to being done.”
Wilson was the No. 2 overall pick in 2021. He has struggled to lead the Jets’ offense and was benched last season for the third time in a 14-month span.
Wilson is owed $5.5 million this season. The Jets likely would have to pay some of that to facilitate a trade.
There was a report Monday that the Jets have received trade offers for Wilson and that Johnson has turned them down. He denied that happened and said it’s Douglas’ call.
“I would say that there’s been conversations,” Douglas said, “but nothing is close.”
Johnson said he felt bad for Wilson and what happened last year. The plan was for him to watch Aaron Rodgers and learn from him. When Rodgers tore an Achilles tendon in Week 1, Wilson became the starting quarterback again.
During Super Bowl week, Johnson took a shot at Wilson, saying the Jets “need a backup quarterback. We didn’t have one last season.”
That likely didn’t help Wilson’s already low trade value.
According to Johnson, Wilson needs to be on a team in which he can observe a more seasoned quarterback. He thinks it should be a different team, but Johnson didn’t rule out that happening with the Jets.
“It’s possible that he can do it here,” Johnson said. “From his standpoint, it’s probably better if he changes faces and he gets to a new place and he can wipe the slate clean in that way. I think that’d probably be better for him.”
Douglas was asked if he could see a scenario in which Wilson is back. He said, “We’re so early in this offseason process” and that he hasn’t “given that much thought.”
If Wilson somehow returns, he will be the third- or fourth-string quarterback. The Jets signed Tyrod Taylor to back up Rodgers and could draft one to develop.
Al Iannazzone covers the Jets for Newsday after spending nearly two decades on the NBA beat with Knicks and Nets.
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