Jerry Jones compares Jets' Zach Wilson to Tony Romo, Dak Prescott

It may not be the most comparable of situations, but what Jerry Jones had to say about former first-round draft pick Zach Wilson taking back over under center for the New York Jets certainly grabbed some attention. 

Ahead of the Dallas Cowboys’ Week 2 matchup with Wilson and the Jets and just days after Aaron Rodgers was ruled out for the year after suffering a torn Achilles in his first regular-season bout with New York, Jones discussed the situation.

The Cowboys owner made it very clear, without directly stating it, that overlooking the Jets or Wilson would be a grave mistake while speaking on 105.3 The Fan, as The Athletic’s Jon Machota revealed.

"I think we all should turn to examples where they've seen it happen. We lost Tony Romo. I would argue that we may never had seen Dak Prescott had you not lost Tony Romo. We thought we were down and out, and Prescott comes in and the rest is history. Tony didn't get his job back. The point is, it happens,” Jones told 105.3 The Fan, per Machota.

It’s at least a fair general assessment of the idea that the Cowboys shouldn’t overlook Wilson, but in reality, the situations were obviously quite a bit different. Tony Romo was the long-time quarterback of the Cowboys at the time and suffered his injury during the preseason after battling various injuries over the years. As Dallas fans know, the rest is indeed history, with Dak Prescott taking over and never looking back.

As for Wilson, he’s played in 22 games over the two years prior to this season, posting an 8-14 record as a starter. Over that stretch, he threw for 4,162 yards with 16 touchdowns, 19 interceptions and five rushing scores. The experience factor in the situation for the Jets far outweighs the one the Cowboys faced, but obviously, fans saw Prescott adapt quickly.

One thing worth noting on Wilson’s return to the starting role is that he’ll not only benefit from one of the league’s most talented defenses but also the fact that he was able to work and learn from Rodgers all offseason. The 2023 NFL season may be the one where we see Wilson take his biggest step forward as an NFL quarterback, and potentially even turn the corner.