The Zach Wilson NFL hype train gained a bunch of new passengers Tuesday night as Wilson dazzled in the BYU Cougars’ Boca Raton Bowl win over the UCF Knights.
Not only that, but many of those who were already believers in Wilson’s ability now consider him the second-best quarterback in the 2021 draft behind just Clemson’s Trevor Lawrence, a spot that up until this point has mostly been occupied by Ohio State’s Justin Fields (of course, Wilson hasn’t even declared for the draft yet, but at this point it would be a shock if he didn’t).
During Tuesday’s ESPN-televised game, countless fans were tweeting about Wilson, expressing the hope that “their team” will take him in the draft, and even concocting trade ideas if that team is primed to pick later in the first round.
But it wasn’t just fans, as a number of professional observers also sang Wilson’s praises.
Dane Brugler, The Athletic’s draft expert, wrote on Twitter Tuesday night, “Wilson in San Francisco would be a perfect fit. I think Wilson has a good chance to be the 2nd QB drafted (after Lawrence) so SF would have to make a big trade up to get him (there are currently seven teams with worse records than the 49ers and five with the same 5-9 mark).”
Later, Brugler wrote, “My answer when I was asked by @Connor_J_Hughes what I would do as GM of the #Jets w/ the No. 2 pick. ‘I’m feeling very comfortable with drafting Zach Wilson at number 2.’”
Given that Lawrence is essentially a lock to go No. 1 already and figuring the Jacksonville Jaguars will get that pick, much of the conversation was in the context of the Jets, as their current starting quarterback, Sam Darnold, has struggled this season.
In his latest mock draft released Wednesday morning, Michael Pro Football Focus’ Michael Renner put Wilson second to the Jets behind Lawrence to the Jaguars, writing, “No need to overthink this. Sure, Sam Darnold could turn things around next season after an injury-plagued Year 3 that’s seen him earn a 52.7 passing grade so far. But why take that chance when you have to immediately pay him if he does? Wilson is uber-talented, and he has tape that’s littered with special throws.”
Yahoo’s Eric Edholm also released a new mock draft Wednesday morning with Wilson going No. 2 and wrote, “On Sunday, Jets fans were despondent. Worst win in franchise history, they said. Then some of them watched Wilson in the whatever-it’s-called bowl against UCF on Tuesday night. Those folks seem to be doing better Wednesday morning.
Is Wilson now the guy at No. 2? We’ll see, but he certainly made a compelling case. This is the first time we’ve had Wilson over Justin Fields, who struggled against a good Northwestern defense, even though we’ve been pondering such a move for about a month now.”
On Tuesday night, The DraftWire’s Luke Easterling wrote, “While some teams could easily still have Fields ranked ahead of Wilson, the former has certainly made a strong case to be the second quarterback off the board come next April. At the very least, it’s safe to say that for many, Wilson has already jumped ahead of other big names like Alabama’s Mac Jones, Florida’s Kyle Trask, and North Dakota State’s Trey Lance.”
For a local take around the Jets, The New York Post’s Mark Fischer wrote Tuesday night after the bowl game, “Wilson finished the game 26 of 34 for 425 yards, was named offensive MVP and may have provided Jets fans with a glimmer of hope after their team likely blew their chance to select Clemson stud quarterback Trevor Lawrence with the No. 1 pick in the 2021 NFL Draft.”