Insider predicts final outcome for Zach Wilson, Jets saga

Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk explained in a piece published Sunday night what the New York Jets may have to give up to get a different team to take much-maligned quarterback Zach Wilson off their hands this offseason. 

"He has a fully guaranteed compensation package of just over $5.5M," Florio said about Wilson. "...If [the Jets] cut him, Wilson could sign with another team for the three-year minimum of $1.055M, with the Jets on the hook for the balance. New York’s best move could be to agree to pay that amount and then hope for something paltry in return." 

Over the weekend, Rich Cimini of ESPN reported that potential landing spots for Wilson are "dwindling." Cimini added that Wilson is "probably hoping for his release, so he can find a job with no strings attached." 

On Monday morning, Andy Vasquez of NJ Advance Media for NJ.com noted that the Jets will "be lucky to even get [Wilson's] salary off the books" this offseason. Vasquez also said that fans shouldn't "count on" the Jets finding a trade partner regarding Wilson's services during the ongoing owners meetings. 

"The most likely outcome could be that the Jets will have to just cut the cord on Wilson and hope to eventually save $1.055M," Florio continued. 

Florio and others previously mentioned that the Jets would have to pay most of Wilson's fully guaranteed compensation package for 2024 and/or attach a draft pick in a deal to convince even one club to trade for the 24-year-old who seemingly no longer has a home with the organization that made him the second overall choice of the 2021 draft. However, recent events suggest teams may not be willing to offer even a final-round draft selection to land Wilson. 

Shortly after the scouting combine ended, the New England Patriots traded quarterback Mac Jones to the Jacksonville Jaguars in exchange for a 2024 sixth-round draft pick. More recently, the Chicago Bears accepted a conditional 2025 sixth-round selection from the Pittsburgh Steelers for Justin Fields. 

Jones and Fields are both flawed products, but also produced better overall results than Wilson over the past three years. 

Pro Football Reference shows that Wilson ended the 2023 regular season ranked last in the NFL among qualified players with a 30.6 adjusted QBR and 30th out of 32 quarterbacks with a 77.2 passer rating. Such numbers combined with the fact that it's no secret the Jets want to get rid of Wilson led Cimini to predict that the veteran of three NFL seasons may have to accept a QB3 gig with a different club to be on an active roster this coming September.