Garrett Wilson is sick of the losing. The NY Jets' star wide receiver put together another impressive performance in his team's 32-26 loss to the Miami Dolphins on Sunday, finishing with seven catches for 114 yards despite being shadowed by one of the best cornerbacks in the game.
However, as has been the case throughout Wilson's NFL career, his heroics weren't enough to salvage a win. The Jets have now lost 10+ games in each of Wilson's first three seasons in the NFL. At 3-10, the 2024 season is destined to be his worst yet as a member of the Jets.
That losing takes its toll on a young player's psyche, especially when it feels like you can't escape the cycle of misery. "It’s like you have like a gene or some s—t," Wilson told reporters following Sunday's loss.
The 24-year-old is wise beyond his years and one of the most beloved and level-headed members of the Jets' locker room, but he's beginning to see the writing on the wall. The Jets realize it too.
Garrett Wilson could request a trade from the NY Jets
The Athletic's Zack Rosenblatt reported on Sunday that Wilson "expressed privately that if things didn’t get better, he wouldn’t want to stick around long-term" following the team's dreadful 2023 campaign.
Rosenblatt went on to report that "Internally (and externally), many have wondered when — not if — Wilson will request a trade." Many within the organization and around the league seem to believe it's only a matter of time until Wilson wants out.
Wilson expressed a desire for an improved situation and at least any semblance of competency from an organization that has long resided in the NFL's basement. Instead, he was met with what might go down as the most disastrous and disappointing season in franchise history.
The Jets entered the 2024 season with legitimate Super Bowl aspirations. The expectation was that a returning Aaron Rodgers would not only give Wilson his first NFL-caliber quarterback but also allow the Jets to reach their ceiling as a team.
Neither has happened. Rodgers has looked like a shell of his former self for most of the season while the team around him, namely the defense, has regressed significantly.
Rodgers ranks 21st in EPA/play, 33rd in completion percentage over expected (ahead of only Cooper Rush and Anthony Richardson), and 30th in average air yards. An injury-riddled season hasn't helped matters, but Rodgers hasn't been the QB savior Wilson and the Jets were promised.
Wilson has already expressed his displeasure in his current situation. That situation hasn't improved — if anything, it's gotten worse. Now, the Jets are seemingly holding their breath in anticipation of what could come next.
The Jets theoretically hold Wilson's rights through the 2028 season, but it's highly unlikely it would ever get to that point. Wilson is under contract in 2024 and would play on his fifth-year option — assuming the Jets pick it up this offseason — in 2025.
The team would then have the option to place the franchise tag on him as many as three times, but that seems unlikely. If Wilson wants out, he will have an opportunity to force the Jets' hand in the near future.
Garrett Wilson is a franchise cornerstone — the kind of player and person teams dream of building around. His talent, work ethic, and character are a blessing to the entire organization. But if the Jets don’t turn things around soon, they risk driving their young star to seek a future elsewhere.
