CLEVELAND, Ohio, April 29, 2021 (Gephardt Daily) — Zachary Wilson, 21-year-old quarterback at Brigham Young University, was selected in the NFL draft on Thursday in the first round, second pick.
As expected, he will play with the the New York Jets, a team that had expressed a strong interest in him.
Wilson, a Draper, is now the Utah native to be picked highest ever in the NFL draft.
“Hey @nyjets, how we feelin?,” @BYUfootball at 6:43 p.m. Thursday.
“@zachkapono1 is a New York Jet,” @nyjets tweeted a few minutes later.
Just after 7 p.m. Utah time, Wilson tweeted, saying being picked was ‘A dream come true:
A dream come true, and it’s just the beginning. You haven’t seen anything yet! RT if you’re with me @nyjets fans! #NFLDraft2021 @verizon #VerizonPartner pic.twitter.com/Ltv6qiUjmu
— Zachary Wilson (@zachkapono1) April 30, 2021
The Jets also published the following story about their choice:
The New York Jets have selected BYU quarterback Zach Wilson with the second overall pick of the 2021 NFL Draft tonight.
The Jets took Wilson one selection after the Jacksonville Jaguars kicked off the draft as expected in selecting Clemson QB Trevor Lawrence No. 1 overall.
“I wouldn’t believe it till the day it happened, but this is exactly what I was hoping for,” Wilson, one of 13 prospects on site at the NFL’s draft headquarters in Cleveland, said on ESPN right after his name was called as the Jets’ second overall pick of the draft around 8:33 p.m. ET and he exchanged stinging hand slaps with Jets fans along the runway en route to a big bro hug with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell. “I’m excited for the opportunity. I know we’re going to have something special and I can’t wait to get to work.”
Wilson, who wore uniform No. 1 in his last five seasons of high school and college football, turns 22 in August at the scheduled start of Jets training camp. Despite his age and baby face, he demonstrated NFL-level skills during his junior season at BYU in 2020 and at his pro day, when he delivered long throws off-balance and on the money. And he has spoken of having a chip on his shoulder that fires him up to put his best product on the field every game.
He comes to the Jets as the first draft choice of first-year head coach Robert Saleh and the second first-rounder taken by general manager Joe Douglas and his personnel team since Douglas arrived as GM in June 2019. Last year the Jets grabbed left tackle Mekhi Becton 11th overall and now they have placed their new rookie quarterback behind “personal protector” Becton and his offensive line with the anticipation of having Wilson lead the Jets offense in the 2021 season.
Wilson arrives after Sam Darnold, the Jets’ starter for the previous three seasons, was traded earlier this month to Carolina. The Panthers sent three draft picks to the Jets in the trade — their sixth-round compensatory pick, No. 266 overall, in this year’s draft, plus second- and fourth-round selections in 2022.
To read more about Wilson and his football achievements so far, check out his BYU Cougar player page or his biography on Wikipedia.
