Since Peyton Manning’s retirement, the Denver Broncos have been in dire need of a stable franchise quarterback, seeing a revolving door of 13 different starters.
The possibility of a 14th starting quarterback is on the horizon in the form of first-round rookie Bo Nix. However, another potential contender for this spot is Zach Wilson.
With training camp underway, some reports have mentioned that Wilson had the best day. In contrast, others have questioned that with reports that he had the best game of the day a couple of times and struggled to be consistent in all phases.
So is Wilson the long-awaited solution to the Broncos’ quarterback problem?
The answer is no, but it’s a complex one. Never say never, as Wilson could take the job, but trusting him with this crucial position would be a monumental mistake for the Broncos’ decision-makers.
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While it’s true that Wilson has the most experience on the field of the Broncos’ three quarterbacks, that experience isn’t good. He was selected No. 2 overall in the NFL draft. New York Jetsbut his play on the field was so bad that they agreed to the equivalent of a ham sandwich in exchange for Wilson via trade just to get him off their hands.
As a starter, Wilson led the Jets to a 12-21 record, throwing 23 touchdowns and 25 interceptions in three seasons. Last year, he had the lowest passing success rate at 36.5%, and while many want to point the finger at coaches, his career-high passing success rate was 37.7%, which never rose above the third-lowest.
Coaching plays a big role, especially since Nathaniel Hackett was responsible for Russell Wilson’s career-low passing success rate in 2022. Hackett followed that up by coaching Zach last year. However, Zach’s previous two seasons show that he was playing terribly long before Hackett arrived in New York.
If you look at other advanced statistics on quarterbacks, especially the key metrics that best reveal success in the NFL, Wilson has finished in the bottom five in each of his three seasons. Wilson has a history of being a bad quarterback, and leaving him as the starter in Denver and expecting a sudden turnaround would be a mistake.
It’s extremely rare for a quarterback with 20-plus starts and three seasons under his belt to suddenly change direction, let alone become a great player. The NFL has never seen a quarterback turnaround like this.
What would make picking Wilson as the starter an even bigger mistake, however, has nothing to do with him, but rather with that 24-year-old Nix who was selected in the first round.
Denver needs Nix on the field as a rookie to figure out what he has in him and try to build a competitive team, making the most of that rookie contract. If Nix is successful, the Broncos will likely have to re-sign him in three or four years at an average salary of more than $60 million per year.
The Broncos selected Nix with the 12th overall pick. It’s a significant investment and the team can’t afford to sit around waiting for him.
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