Fansided

Zach Wilson, Robert Saleh lead Jets into new era

By Jarrett Bailey

GREEN BAY, WISCONSIN - AUGUST 21: Zach Wilson #2 of the New York Jets warms up before a preseason game against the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field on August 21, 2021 in Green Bay, Wisconsin. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images)
GREEN BAY, WISCONSIN - AUGUST 21: Zach Wilson #2 of the New York Jets warms up before a preseason game against the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field on August 21, 2021 in Green Bay, Wisconsin. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

It’s a new dawn in the Big Apple with the New York Jets. Can new head coach Robert Saleh and rookie quarterback Zach Wilson start on the right foot?

For the New York Jets, the 2021 offseason was one of turnover. A new head coach and a new quarterback will look to begin the climb out of the NFL’s basement.

Best-case scenario

The bar has been set pretty low for the Jets — Adam Gase made sure of that. Realistically, the Jets should be a team that will stay competitive even if they don’t get a ton of wins.

Zach Wilson looks like a future elite playmaker, and they added Morgan Moses and Alijah Vera-Tucker up front to compliment Mekhi Becton and the offensive line. They also brought over Corey Davis from Tennessee and rookie Elijah Moore looks like he could be a steal out of Ole Miss.

The Jets won’t be a playoff team, but if they can stay competitive and finish around seven or eight wins, that would be a great start for the new regime.

Worst-case scenario

These are still the Jets we are talking about, so we can’t rule out the possibility of this going absolutely terrible and the season ending with a top-five pick.

Robert Saleh seems like the right hire, but what if he isn’t? Zach Wilson seems like he could pan out, but what if he doesn’t? Plus, the defense still has some holes on it that will likely get exploited this season.

While this is the worst-case scenario for the Jets, we have definitely see them reach the worst of expectations before.

X-factor

We briefly touched on the offensive line, but it deserves a more lengthy conversation. The reason Sam Darnold was seeing ghosts is because each time he took a snap, he was running for his life. Moses, Vera-Tucker, and Becton are all really good pieces to try and solve that problem.

If Michael Carter and Tevin Coleman can get a solid run game going as well, then New York will know that their front five have taken a big step forward. The last thing they want is what happened in Cincinnati with Joe Burrow — they can’t have Wilson meet that same fate.

Biggest Game – Week 1 at Carolina

Like former lovers, the Jets and Sam Darnold will awkwardly cross paths to kick off the season on Sept. 12.

Obviously, the Jets want to prove that they made the right decision by moving on from Darnold and drafting Wilson, so a win in Carolina would do a lot for that team to begin the season.

If Darnold outplays Wilson, though, and the Panthers win, the New York media would have a field day with that.

Bold prediction

There’s hope for the Jets. Wilson’s ability to make something out of nothing is what the Jets offense needed, and they seem to have made all the right moves this offseason.

Hiring Saleh feels like the correct hire, drafting Moore and Carter to give the offense a young, fresh feel. There will be some growing pains, but seven wins for the Jets feels doable, and that’s where we expect them to be at the end of 2021.