Zach Wilson
The Record

Jets quarterback Zach Wilson isn’t dealing with social media this fall. He sees it as a distraction (as many players seemingly do) and wants to focus solely on bringing this Jets team to new heights.

The 2021 No. 2 overall pick noted after Tuesday’s training camp practice he’s deleted all the social media apps (Twitter, Instagram, etc.) off his phone for the season.

“For me, it just comes down to limiting what voices I really need to hear and, right now, it’s here, hearing what my coaches have to say, what the other QBs have to say, and what my teammates are thinking on every single play,” he told the media. “Even parents sometimes can be a distraction.”

I chuckled a little at that last line, regardless of what he meant by it.

Because Wilson doesn’t just stir up headlines on the field (those have mostly been negative, so we’ll put them by the wayside for now). He’s also become a fan favorite across the league for recent social media drama involving his personal life. If you weren’t on the internet for a few days back in mid-July, the gist is that Wilson apparently slept with his mom’s best friend, which his ex-girlfriend, Abbey Gile, alleged. Gile now seems to be dating Washington Commanders wide receiver Dax Milne, who is Wilson’s former BYU teammate and roommmate.

I’m sure Wilson was just alluding to the fact that parents can become too involved at times, to the point where it can cause distraction to an extremely high-pressure job such as being the literal quarterback of an NFL team. But you can’t help but connect what he said Tuesday to the drama he was a part of just prior to training camp.

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Ryan Honey is a staff writer and host of the Wide Right Podcast.