Reaction to Jets trading Zach Wilson to Broncos | 3 & Out

John Middlekauff reacts to Zach Wilson being traded from the New York Jets to the Denver Broncos. John discusses why the Broncos need a backup plan if they’re unable to trade up for a QB in the 2024 NFL Draft and why the Jets made a mistake not trading Wilson after acquiring Aaron Rodgers.

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hey what’s up my people John midock new
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hat okay we just had some breaking news
Shawn Peyton and the Denver
Broncos have traded for Zack
Wilson uh I don’t want to say it was
shocking because the Jets have been
trying to give this guy away now for a
couple months really since the combine
and now the Zach Wilson era ends and I
think let’s look at it from the Denver
side and then the jet side uh they
basically
flip-flop they they give him a six they
get a seventh back so they they swapped
some spots late in the draft uh and the
Jets I don’t know the exact amount of
money but are eating a chunk if not the
majority of his5 a half million doll
salary which was a big kind of
impediment to trading him because A5 a
half million dollar backup you view as a
guy that can play so no one was going to
trade you anything of value for for a
backup quarterback that makes $5.5
million I mean Baker last year signed
for four darnold signed for like less
than three so that was a huge problem
here the money the business of football
because he was such a high pick uh let’s
start with Denver when you draft not
near the top five in a year when a ton
of quarterbacks could go you don’t
control your own destiny and because of
the Russell Wilson trade and what it did
to them draft wise over the couple years
and then cutting him what it does to
your cap you do have some limitations so
going from where they are in the draft
trying to trade up in the top I don’t
know four or five picks I I don’t really
think they’re in a position to do that
now it doesn’t mean it won’t happen
maybe they just mortgage everything and
trade up with the Cardinals to four and
draft a quarterback but I think we can
all agree that would be somewhat
shocky but currently they had denucci
and stum on their roster now is Zack
Wilson better better than either one of
those two I don’t know you would
probably bet against it but I do think
you have to have some contingency plans
of looking at this like listen we’re
getting this guy for nothing that maybe
we strike a little oil it’s what the
Steelers did with Justin Fields it’s
what the Jags did with M Jones the thing
is all of those guys
are on one-year contracts right they are
set to be a free agent because obviously
none of them got their first round
option picked up a year ago so or I
guess yeah it would have been last year
or would have been this year now I’m
confused but clearly none of them did it
would it would have been this year you
could pick up the fifth year option
after their fourth year not their third
year
obviously but I I I think with the
Broncos is like there is a chance I I
would say maybe above 50% that this is
their quarterback room and they just
kind of bought him out because their
team’s not going to be that good right
it it’s just not they cut a bunch of
players obviously they got rid of
Russell Wilson which I totally
understand but Russell Wilson is better
than these guys they just didn’t think
Russell Wilson was nearly good enough to
justify keep paying him 40 plus
millionar but this gets back to Shawn
pton taking this job it’s like hey man
this is not I I get they’re offering you
$820 million a year they offered them
like A90 million contracts he’s being
paid like a player hard to turn down
money a lot of people talk a big game oh
yeah that’s not that interested throw a
little coin in front of him whatever
relative is to your industry gets people
to think twice they gave him 90 plus
million dollar in full control he can do
whatever the hell he wants George
Peyton’s just told to facilitate his
ideas that’s what’s currently going on
in Denver but I don’t view this as like
he thinks Zach Wilson is something it’s
like hey we’re in a little desperation
this is the guy this a couple years ago
a lot of people viewed as the second
best Prospect in the draft I mean the
Jets were not alone I personally did it
did not I I thought that it was Justin
Fields wrong on that turns out the
entire quarterback class sucks and
Trevor Lawrence still has a lot to proof
but he’s in a different Universe than
these other cats and uh the Broncos to
me are just preparing that the draft’s
out of their control so if guys fly off
the board what if penx is gone that
they’re like listen we’re not taking B
Knicks in the top 15 and who knows if
he’s there when we draft with our second
pick so you look at a team that has
limited assets financially and and draft
wise over the last couple years that
they’re in a little bit of a desperate
situation like I kept thinking like why
wouldn’t like the Chiefs or the bills or
with an established guy get this guy for
nothing and clearly they wanted no part
of him right because they could I mean
the Chiefs chose Carson Wentz over the
flyer that is Zack Wilson now you could
argue he’s even toxic is the wrong word
You could argue he was that last year
because of the way everything played out
he’s just viewed as not very good at all
I mean really bad I mean the guy’s been
benched like three or four times in a 12
month span and not exactly always for
Aaron Rogers I mean he’s getting benched
for nobody’s so even though I kind of
like Mike White and Mike White made some
money going down to Miami but I I think
Denver is just looking at this a little
bit like he’s cheap doesn’t cost us
anything and we’re desperate it’s really
that simple and then on the jet side
let’s face it I do think last year in
the off season when they got or knew
even before they knew 100% they were
getting Aaron roggers because it wasn’t
a done deal it was clear Aaron roggers
was never playing for the Packers again
and really the only team going all in on
them was the Jets it’s not like there
were a bunch of other teams bidding for
them they should have moved on from him
then they had the opportunity that they
they probably could have got rid of a
lot like the 49ers right the 49ers got
rid of Trey Lance last training camp to
the Dallas Cowboys they got a fourth
round pick now could the Jets have got
that last off season for Zack Wilson I
don’t know but they probably could have
got a fifth or a sixth and unloaded his
money and never had to eat a penny of
the last years because they had already
paid the bonus but they didn’t he wanted
his cake and being able to eat it too
because they’re like ah we got Aaron
Rogers maybe he can rehabilitate this
guy and help him out and everything was
kind of hunky dory you know OTAs then
even training camp like oh they’re best
buddies Aaron got hurt and then stories
started coming out he never talked to
him again so it’s like they they made a
bad mistake separate from the disaster
that was the draft pick I’m just saying
they had new information CU listen I I
understand liking a player coming out
and then it not working out happens all
the time especially at quarterback but
after a couple year span and everything
that went down like they had the
information and then they get Aaron
Rogers like you pivot don’t try to
chase a bad deal with more bad money
that’s what it felt like they did and
they wasted if this was like a financial
decision they wasted a lot of money for
no reason when they could have just
punted and moved on and didn’t Joe
Douglas has made some good moves clearly
but this move essentially if Aaron
Rogers now coming back off the injury
he’s 40 years old doesn’t go that well
remember when he was healthy with the
Packers a couple years ago he was not as
good as he had been so he was a guy
trending in the wrong direction and if
you just say let’s say best case
scenario this year he’s like
the I don’t know I mean I I don’t know
if he’s a top 10 quarterback I guess
best case scenario he could be like the
fifth or sixth best quarterback but that
seems at 40 years old coming off in
Achilles I think the most realistic
scenario he’s somewhere between 10 and
15 some good games some bad games and
the athletic ability that made him
special once upon a time is nowhere near
the same and that’s the problem is they
had to chase Aaron roggers because the
disaster that was Zack Wilson and then
because it’s football you just
rip your Achilles and it derails
everything and now let’s face it these
guys are all coaching gming the whole
thing for their job why everyone thinks
that like yeah they need offensive
lineman and they got two tackles one
who’s been injured a lot another guy
who’s been pretty durable but he was
injured last year that like they the
safe move take an offensive lineman a
lot of people around the league think
they’re going to go with Brock Bowers
because it’s all about
2024 if they’re not 10 plus wins in a
wild card like adios to everybody like
they’re all going to get fired and it
gets back to what a wise man told me a
long time ago cuz once they made the
Jamal Adams trade they made some good
moves they had a bunch of draft Capital
it’s like we could hit on six seven
eight picks and they all could be couple
pro bowlers high-end starters a bunch of
good players if we miss on the
quarterback none of it matters and it’s
a great lesson like most times the 49ers
whiffed on Tre Lance
whiffed but somehow Brock P fell into
their lap and saved the operation that
didn’t happen here they thought they had
found their Savior and this 39-year-old
Aaron Rogers he’s taking everyone to
Madison Square Garden buddy buddy the
moment that Achilles ripped it’s like
we’re in major major trouble and because
we got greedy hoping we could
rehabilitate this guy we had to play
Zack Wilson and that was obviously a
disaster the leaks remember the middle
of last year Zack Wilson got benched and
said like I’m not going back in the
story leaked Sol was pissed off checking
people’s phones it’s just been a
disastrous situation in big picture you
could say like listen Salah was very
very successful as a defensive
coordinator Joe Douglas was like beloved
by people in the Ravens and the
Eagles maybe it’s the Jets you know the
Jets are just a place where it’s very
very difficult owners of C uh they are
now just pretty consistently just a
complete dumpster fire and the pressure
that’s on this organization now the
division has gotten worse bellich checks
out the Patriots are in shambles uh the
Dolphins ton of pressure on them and
they’ve gotten worse this offseason
obviously the bills on paper are worse
but they’re Lightyear better than the
Jets but they’re still like clearly just
man for man on the roster not as good
even Brandon Bean said that a couple
weeks ago when they traded Diggs our
team today is not as good without Diggs
on the team now that we’ll see what
happens over the next week who they add
in this draft at that position but they
they did just remove a guy even if you
think he’s trending in the wrong
direction he was still one of the better
players on their team and they got a
pick in like seven years in the second
round so it’s like it’s not helping him
now um I don’t know I I bought into the
Jets last year I was like I picked him
to win the division obviously that ended
five plays into the season but I’m not
buying it this year they’re a team put
together with a bunch of injured guys uh
depending all on this 40-year-old guy
coming coming off a major major injury
and I don’t know I just I the coach has
not proven that he knows what he’s doing
as a head
coach and Nathaniel Hackett I think we
all agree if you had to rank offensive
coordinators in the NFL in 2024 I don’t
see how he’d be any higher than like the
bottom five bald guy root form seems
like a nice guy doesn’t seem like a
really good coach though at all so the
Broncos I get it they’re desperate this
was cheap like whatever we’ll take a
flyer cost us what 20 picks in the 200s
who gives a the Jets this is
basically acknowledging what we already
knew a year and a half ago this was a
disastrous pick it wasn’t like you
missed on the pick disastrous pick