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Zach Wilson's starter dreams crushed after losing worst QB battle in NFL

It's over for Zach Wilson
Justin Fried
Justin Fried

The Jet Press

Zach Wilson / Matthew Stockman/GettyImages

Former NY Jets quarterback Zach Wilson is looking for a fresh start with the Denver Broncos this offseason following a disastrous three years in New York. Wilson has even been given an opportunity to compete for the starting job, albeit in easily the worst QB room in the NFL.

Still, Wilson received a golden opportunity this summer to revitalize his image and salvage his career. Unfortunately, he may have already squandered that opportunity.

Wilson entered the summer competing with the likes of rookie Bo Nix and veteran backup Jarrett Stidham for the Broncos' starting quarterback job. The Broncos were giving all three quarterbacks an opportunity to work with the first-team offense, but when Wilson's scheduled day came up on Tuesday, the former Jets QB was nowhere to be found.

Wilson was relegated to the third-team offense on Tuesday despite being scheduled to work with the starters. Based on all reports coming out of Broncos training camp, Wilson already seems to be a distant third in the worst quarterback room in football.

His hopes of starting this season have likely already been ended just a week into training camp.

Zach Wilson's post-Jets career is going exactly how you'd expect it to go

Broncos insider Benjamin Allbright reported on Tuesday that, if the season were to start today, there would be a sizable gap between Wilson and the other two QBs. And remember, his competition is Bo Nix and Jarrett Stidham.

Albright later remarked that Wilson's inconsistency has held him back and that he likely has no trade value at this stage. The Broncos are stuck with him, and barring injury, he seems unlikely to play this season.

This shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone who has watched Wilson play over the last few seasons. The former No. 2 overall pick is statistically one of the worst quarterbacks in modern NFL history. Expecting everything to change in a new environment was never wise.

The Broncos took a chance on Wilson, likely due to head coach Sean Payton's belief that he could fix the former BYU star. It's still early, but the reclamation project doesn't appear to be going very well.

Payton declined to officially rule Wilson out of the competition when speaking to reporters after Tuesday's practice, but it seems painfully obvious at this point. Wilson isn't going to be the starter — nor is he going to be the backup.

If Wilson is unable to find a home in the worst quarterback room in the NFL, it's hard to see him salvaging any sort of an NFL career at this point. This might be the end of the road for one of the most infamous draft busts in recent history.

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Justin Fried

Justin Fried

Justin Fried is an editor for FanSided who has over seven years of experience covering the NFL and various other sports. A diehard Jets fan since birth, Justin has served as the editor for The Jet Press since 2019, interviewing athletes such as Sauce Gardner, Curtis Martin, LaDainian Tomlinson, Joe Klecko, and many others. Justin has also worked closely with brands like Red Bull to help highlight the niche sectors of the sporting world. His four-part series on the sport of breaking remains one of his proudest pieces of work. In his spare time, Justin is an avid pro wrestling fan who is fortunate enough to have traveled to nearly 30 different countries.