Gardner: Zach Wilson has tools to be 'top-tier NFL QB'

After the New York Jets traded quarterback Zach Wilson to the Denver Broncos, star cornerback Sauce Gardner still believes Wilson can be a successful NFL starter.

"When it comes to talent, as players and coaches ... if I see somebody do something one time, then I know it's in them. I know they can do it," Gardner said on the "Green Light" podcast. "I did practice against him for two straight years. I've even seen him do, like, some special things in games, so it's like I know he can do it."

He added: "I feel like he has all the tools that it takes to be a top-tier NFL quarterback."

Wilson played two seasons with Gardner, starting 20 games during that stretch. He was the team's primary signal-caller in 2022 and was forced into the starting job again in 2023 after Aaron Rodgers tore his Achilles in the season opener.

The 24-year-old Wilson went 9-11 in those 20 contests, throwing for 3,959 yards with 14 touchdowns and 14 interceptions. Out of 25 quarterbacks who have taken at least 700 snaps since Week 1 of the 2022 season, Wilson ranks 25th in EPA/play and success rate, per Ben Baldwin's database.

New York sent Wilson and a seventh-round pick to the Broncos for a sixth-round selection in April. His tenure with the Jets lasted three seasons after the club selected him second overall in the 2021 NFL Draft.

"I feel like a new chapter - like, obviously I’m not familiar with Denver and how they run things and who their coaches (are) - but a new chapter I feel like was good for him," Gardner said.

Wilson joins a Denver quarterback room that includes rookie first-round pick Bo Nix and Jarrett Stidham.