Willie Colon slams NY Jets QB Zach Wilson: ‘An embarrassment’

Former New York Jets guard Willie Colon had harsh words for Robert Saleh and Zach Wilson

The New York Jets may have found a way to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat against the Giants on Sunday in a 13-10 overtime win, but they couldn’t avoid the strong criticism from their former offensive lineman and SNY analyst Willie Colon.

Colon specifically went after quarterback Zach Wilson, who has had a myriad of struggles after being selected second overall in the 2021 NFL draft.

“I’m not even mad at Zach Wilson anymore,” started Colon. “I’m mad at coach [Robert] Saleh, I’m mad at that whole building. Because time after time, they’ve forced down our throats that Zach Wilson is the future for the New York Jets. Because of what he does in practice is good enough for what he does on the field.”

.@SteveGelbs, @BartScott57, @willcolon66 and @ConnorJRogers react to the Jets' 13-10 win over the Giants: pic.twitter.com/fukMasVCB8

— Jets Videos (@snyjets) October 29, 2023

“You cannot watch that tape and say that right now,” continued Colon. “It is an embarrassment. It’s not cute anymore. It is beyond cute. You ask your third-string offensive line to fight tooth and nails and we only got one first down in which he ran for.”

Wilson went 17 of 36 for 240 yards with one touchdown (including a 50-yard dump-off to Breece Hall). The Jets’ quarterback also added 25 yards on the ground, which included the team’s first third-down conversion of the game. Wilson had no interceptions but did lose a fumble.

Colon believes that if the Jets’ quarterback played any other position in the NFL, not only would he not be starting, but he wouldn’t have a job in the league. And Colon didn’t hold back from letting that be known to the public.

“When is it not cute anymore? Like when is it? I’m being serious cause if me and Bart [Scott] played like that, we wouldn’t have a job,” Colon continued. “We wouldn’t be in the NFL, we wouldn’t be on this table. We wouldn’t be worthy of talking about football. If the Giants kicker doesn’t miss that field goal this is beyond cute. … Is that what we have to rely on to get a win?”

Wilson has seen a lot of criticism for his performance this year, so the comments from Colon shouldn’t be surprising. Yet while the Jets’ quarterback has plenty of doubters (including the Jets’ lone Super Bowl-winning quarterback), he’s also received plenty of support from players like Dallas Cowboys edge rusher Micah Parsons.

One thing is certain, however. The Jets offense needs to perform better if they want their playoff aspirations to become a reality.