BREAKING NEWS: Broncos trade for quarterback Zach Wilson

The Denver Broncos have swung a surprising draft week trade for New York Jets quarterback Zach Wilson.

According to NFL Network’s lead insider Ian Rapoport, the Denver Broncos have acquired former second-overall pick, Zach Wilson, from the New York Jets for a late-round pick swap.

The Broncos are getting Zach Wilson for basically nothing. They’re sending one of their sixth-round selections to the Jets for Wilson and a seventh-round pick while the Jets are also paying a portion of his $5.45 million dollar salary. I get the outrage that some may have about this but it is a low-risk deal that could have immense upside if Sean Payton can turn Zach Wilson’s career around.

Wilson was the second overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft and was coming off a draft process where some were saying he was a better overall prospect than the eventual number one overall pick, Trevor Lawrence. Unfortunately for Wilson, his time with the Jets did not go as expected. He lasted just three seasons with the team and was benched multiple times throughout his short career. He played in 34 games and attempted 993 passes for 6,293 yards, 23 touchdowns, and 25 interceptions. This past season for the Jets, he completed 60.1% of his passes for 2.271 yards, 8 touchdowns and 7 interceptions.

Ultimately, the Jets and Wilson needed to part ways. The fit was not working, and Wilson, Utah-born and raised who played his college ball at BYU was not adjusting well to the New York culture. This move to the Broncos gets him closer to home and closer to his comfort zone while also pairing him with one of the better offensive minds in the game,

Like I said earlier, Wilson is basically a lottery ticket for Sean Payton and the Broncos. He has the second-overall pick pedigree and is leaving a poor fit to hopefully, a better one here in Denver. Let’s see if Payton can get the most out of Wilson like he did this past year with Russell Wilson after Nathaniel Hackett ruined his confidence.

I would expect Wilson and Stidham to compete for the starting job and potentially a roster spot if the Broncos do indeed still draft a quarterback early in the draft.

Speaking of the draft, I do not think this really impacts them going after one of the top quarterbacks in the draft. It does however give them a developmental guy just in case they cannot get a J.J. McCarthy or someone else.

We shall see how it shakes out but I do not hate this move. Low risk move for the Broncos and I am curious to see what he can do with Zach Wilson. I personally was high on Wilson coming out of the draft so hopefully, Payton can get the most out of him.