After what was an interesting offseason, Friday’s preseason opener against the Philadelphia Eagles gave New York Jets quarterback Zach Wilson a chance to focus on football. Unfortunately, it provided some nervous moments for Wilson, the Jets and their fans.
Wilson took off scrambling during a play in the first quarter. He attempted to cut upfield but fell to the ground awkwardly. The good news is that Wilson didn’t stay down on the ground long. Unfortunately, as soon as he was helped back to his feet, the quarterback began hobbling.
Zach Wilson comes up limping after an awkward cut while scrambling. #Jets pic.twitter.com/YkOYZ5sL6f
— Mike Giardi (@MikeGiardi) August 13, 2022
Injuries are always bad. Injuries in the preseason are even worse. And while it’s never good to speculate, non-contact injuries are always troubling to see.
Because of that, upon seeing the injury, the NFL world was less than optimistic.
This looks like an ACL. I hope to god I'm wrong and he's going to be okay but this is sickening to watch. https://t.co/WJdXmIP3h4
— Jake Asman (@JakeAsman) August 13, 2022
I'm no doctor but that didn't look good https://t.co/lUz5eQB5OZ
— Sam Monson (@PFF_Sam) August 13, 2022
https://twitter.com/JackMacCFB/status/1558244757415100418
Zach Wilson suffered the type of injury tonight that makes you think "done for the year" https://t.co/MuBtQyACIN
— Thad Brown (@thadbrown7) August 13, 2022
Hate to see that.
Hope he is okay https://t.co/JLzmqo9T2c
— Jamal St. Cyr (@JStCyrTV) August 13, 2022
Looking at the video, Dr. David J. Chao said that it looked like a torn ACL.
By video, the news is not good.https://t.co/kgOMHGzmiA
— David J. Chao – ProFootballDoc (@ProFootballDoc) August 13, 2022
If that’s true, it would add to a long history of Jets quarterbacks suffering serious injuries in preseason games.
Jets QBs have had some bad preseason injuries through the years:
Namath blew out his knee in 1971 trying to make a tackle.
Pennington broke his wrist in 2003.
Sanchez wrecked his shoulder in 2013.— Brian Costello (@BrianCoz) August 13, 2022
Wilson is entering his second season in the NFL. He started 13 games as a rookie during what was largely an unsuccessful season for both Wilson and his team. The Jets went 3-10 in Wilson’s starts. As a rookie, Wilson completed 55.6% of his passes for 2,334 yards with nine touchdowns, 11 interceptions and a 69.7 passer rating.
Wilson and the Jets were hoping that he could take a big step forward in his second year. Now, though, the primary concern around Wilson is with his health.
[Mike Giardi on Twitter]
