The company line coming out of Jets headquarters during training camp was Kyle Wilson was confident, competent and ready to go.
What Wilson has shown on the field is a different story.
Though most of the Jets’ and Eagles’ key players watched last night’s preseason finale from the sidelines, Wilson was on the field starting at cornerback. The 2010 first-round pick looked passive, and gave up several catches in a 24-14 Jets loss at MetLife Stadium. He was the trailing defender on an Eagles touchdown, but there was a blown coverage that made him look bad.
Nevertheless, Jets coach Rex Ryan was unhappy with Wilson’s performance.
“Kyle had a great training camp up until this game,” Ryan said. “I would have liked to have seen him challenge more. We kind of had a blown coverage on the touchdown. That really was not Kyle’s fault, but it looked like it was. I would have liked to see him get in a guy’s face a little more, but the touchdown was not his fault.”
The Jets are counting on Wilson to be their nickel corner this season after a rocky rookie season. But he has not looked good in training camp and even Bengals rookie quarterback Andy Dalton picked on him two weeks ago in their game with the Jets.
Last night, it was no Michael Vick, but backup Vince Young under center for the Eagles. Young hit Sinorice Moss, who beat Wilson, for a 23-yard gain on third-and-8 in the first quarter. On the same drive, Riley Cooper beat Wilson, but Brodney Pool delivered a vicious hit to prevent a catch. But a few plays later Chad Hall beat Wilson for a 16-yard touchdown, but it looked like he expected help from a safety.
“It was all right,” Wilson said of his play. “We’ll go back and correct the film. Nothing else to say.”
Wilson had a rough start to his rookie season last year. He lost his confidence and saw his playing time diminish. Darrelle Revis mentored him in the offseason, bringing him to Arizona to work out with him with his personal trainers. He also had the Jets equipment staff move Wilson’s locker next to his at their Florham Park, N.J., headquarters.
The Jets lost cornerback Drew Coleman in free agency to the Jaguars, meaning Wilson will have to play a bigger role for the Jets this season.
The Jets took Wilson with the 29th pick overall in 2010. He headlines what has been a disappointing draft class for the Jets so far. Second-round pick Vlad Ducasse failed to win a starting job last year, and has struggled this preseason. Fourth-round pick Joe McKnight was not much of a factor as a rookie, and is third on the depth chart behind Shonn Greene and LaDainian Tomlinson. Fullback John Conner, taken in the fifth round, is the only current starter of the group.
Last night, Ducasse had three penalties and McKnight rushed for six yards on four carries.
The game was an ugly one all around for the Jets, who now must cut their roster down from 79 to 53 players by Saturday. The Jets were outgained 378-117 by the Eagles and had just 24 yards rushing.
“It was kind of an abysmal performance collectively, but I think individually there were some bright spots,” Ryan said.
Ryan and general manager Mike Tannenbaum will now assess who deserves the final few roster spots on the team. They also will keep an eye on who gets released by other teams. The Jets need to find some backup offensive linemen and might look for upgrades in the secondary or at linebacker.