New York Jets quarterback Zach Wilson. Danielle Parhizkaran/NorthJersey.com / USA TODAY NETWORK

Zach Wilson addresses 'pressure' of having to fill Aaron Rodgers' cleats

Originally posted on WI Sports Heroics | By Paolo Songco | Last updated 9/14/23

As they always say, whenever a door closes, another one opens. This is exactly the case for the Jets at this point, as the door closed on Aaron Rodgers’ season following a devastating Achilles injury that will force him to watch from the sidelines for the remainder of the campaign.

At the same time, however, this stunning turn of events has opened up a golden opportunity for backup quarterback Zach Wilson to prove to the football world that he is capable of taking over the helm in New York.

While there have been whispers of New York potentially adding a new quarterback via free agency, Jets head coach Robert Saleh has made it abundantly clear that Wilson is going to be “the guy” moving forward. Wilson has been QB1 for New York over the past two seasons, and it wasn’t until A-Rod arrived this summer that the 24-year-old lost his starting gig. After a series of unfortunate circumstances, Wilson finds himself in the exact same spot he was in this time last year.

There will be a lot of pressure on Wilson now that he has taken over the reins again in New York. However, Wilson isn’t sweating it one bit.

The one thing the former BYU standout has no shortage of is his self-belief:

“A lot of confidence,” Wilson said, via SNY. “I truly believe in myself, and I think that’s the first step to being in the NFL. You have to believe in yourself first and the rest will take care of itself. . . . I wouldn’t say there’s a lot of pressure because the guys in the locker room do a good job showing that they’ve always got my back, leaning on each other and keeping our circle tight.”

As Wilson said, he has the full trust and support of his teammates as well as his coach as he takes on the mantle for the Jets the rest of the way.

It’s going to be an undeniably tough road ahead for the Jets as they navigate through the season without Aaron Rodgers, but if the resiliency they showed in their Week 1 win over the Buffalo Bills is any indication of what we should expect from this team this year, then they could be a problem in the AFC.

This article first appeared on WI Sports Heroics and was syndicated with permission.

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