June Jones likes the selection of Zach Wilson by the New York Jets, the former NFL head coach on-board with the pick of a franchise quarterback by general manager Joe Douglas.
Wilson, taken second overall by the Jets in last month’s NFL Draft, represents the fourth franchise quarterback taken by the organization since 2009. The hope is that Wilson, with a rebuilding roster around him, can finally be that quarterback to end the Jets playoff drought.
A string of playoff misses that now is at a decade.
“I think they got a really good player…he will play good as the players around him,” Jones told SI’s ‘NFL Draft Bible.’
“The new head coach being a defensive guy will allow him not to have to carry the team passing which he eventually have to do for them….but I know how defensive guys think….run ball and play defense.”
That “defensive guy” is Robert Saleh, hired this offseason by the Jets to replace Adam Gase. The pick of Saleh is the third time in the last four hires by the franchise where they have gone with a former defensive coordinator as head coach. That would seem to spell doom for Wilson, especially as the Jets struck out in the development of Mark Sanchez and Geno Smith over the past decade while waving the white flag on Sam Darnold this past offseason.
But the hope is that with a good ground game and a solid defense, Wilson won’t be asked to do too much and can manage games for his first season or two in the league.
The Jets are clearly rebuilding after a 2-14 season but after taking a franchise left tackle last offseason in Mekhi Becton, they selected Wilson with the second pick and then moved up in the draft to select Alijah Vera-Tucker, a left guard out of USC.
And although he played right tackle last season, Vera-Tucker projects as interior lineman with the athleticism to pull and get down the field. The offense is slowly coming together.
The Jets also helped Wilson in the second round by drafting Elijah Moore, a slot wide receiver out of Ole Miss.
Jones is a former NFL head coach who also spent time in the college ranks with Hawaii and SMU. Currently, he continues to follow the NFL and college game closely while pursuing his passion for coaching with CoachTube.com. The website, which offers coaching instructional videos, is a platform for Jones to offer a certification course in the ‘Run & Shoot Offense’ he helped revolutionize throughout his career.
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