Zach Wilson Contract Dispute Not Impacting Rookie of the Year Chances
By Peter Dewey
New York Jets rookie quarterback Zach Wilson is not in training camp, and he won’t be, until he and the Jets can come into an agreement on a contract.
That means James Morgan and Mike White will get all of the reps at quarterback for New York, which is a less than ideal situation. Wilson is going to be the guy this season, but the Jets may need to back down from their desire to push some of Wilson’s signing bonus money into 2022.
Unsigned 1st-round draft picks, like Zach Wilson and Trey Lance, have a logical position on declining off-set language in a "fully guaranteed" contract.
— Chris Mortensen (@mortreport) July 28, 2021
It's on the organization for misevaluating a player or failing to develop him if he's released before deal expires.
“As to cash flow, the Jets want to defer millions in signing bonus money earned by Wilson when he executes the contract to 2022,” ProFootballTalk’s Mike Florio wrote. “The recent precedent for players taken in the top two include all signing bonus money paid promptly. (Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow and Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence, the last two No. 1 overall picks, got theirs within 15 days of signing. The last two second overall picks, 49ers defensive end Nick Bosa and Washington defensive end Chase Young, received their signing bonus within 30 days of signing).”
Wilson just wants to get paid, and rightfully so, after being selected with the second overall pick in this year’s draft. The Jets don’t really have much leverage, as their entire season, and the future of the franchise, depends on Wilson’s play.
Right now, Wilson is third on the odds list to win the NFL’s Offensive Rookie of the Year award on WynnBET at +600. He recently moved ahead of San Francisco 49ers rookie quarterback Trey Lance who has also not signed his rookie deal.
Wilson is behind only Trevor Lawrence (+275) and Justin Fields (+525) to win the award, and he could make a push to jump Fields considering the Chicago Bears are aiming to start Andy Dalton at quarterback.
WynnBET has the Jets projected to win 6.5 games in 2021 with the under (-145) as the favorite to the over (+125). That’s a step forward from last year’s dreadful season, but the team could get off to a slow start if Wilson misses a significant amount of training camp and isn’t up to speed by Week 1.
The Jets need to come to a compromise quickly, because entering camp without your most important player is not how you want to set the tone for a season.
Will Zach Wilson win Rookie of the Year? Get in on the action with the WynnBET app in New Jersey, Indiana or Colorado.