NFL mock draft, 3 rounds: QBs, trades, surprises in latest predictions
2021 NFL mock draft: 2nd pick
Scouting Report. BYU. Zach Wilson. player. 30. Pick Analysis. QB. 2
Jets GM/HC: Joe Douglas/Robert Saleh
After trading Sam Darnold to the Carolina Panthers, it’ll be a new era of New York Jets football again in 2021.
Rookie head coach Robert Saleh and general manager George Douglas have done a good job of resetting this roster and getting Saleh some good talent to work with on the defensive side of the ball with their massive stockpile of draft selections this year and next.
After the additions made in free agency — notably guys like Carl Lawson, Corey Davis, Sheldon Rankins, and Lamarcus Joyner — the Jets are poised to make Zach Wilson the second overall selection in the 2021 NFL Draft.
Wilson didn’t exactly come out of “nowhere” in 2020 but he was certainly this year’s biggest riser at the position. A shoulder surgery in 2019 (labrum) and thumb injury that season (which also required surgery) limited Wilson to 16 starts in his first two years at BYU where he was the youngest starting quarterback in school history at the age of 19.
He blew up in 2020 with 43 total touchdowns (33 passing, 10 rushing) and only three interceptions while completing 73.5 percent of his passes for nearly 3,700 yards through the air.
Wilson makes throws that remind you of guys like Patrick Mahomes and Aaron Rodgers. You hate to see guys pumped up by hyperbole this time of year, but watching Wilson work is truly a sight to behold.
Although nobody is saying that you’re looking at a surefire league MVP here, that’s what you’re buying into. You’re buying into the tools, the tremendous arm talent, the athleticism, and the big-time potential. It’s a copycat league and everyone wants a guy like Mahomes who can make ridiculous throws to all levels of the field seemingly at will.
Wilson is a rare type of guy who can do the little things well as well as make those highlight-reel plays with regularity.