Kyle Wilson has gotten some very good reviews in camp and preseason games thus far. The Post notes the ways his teammates think he has made progress.
"Before you could try and pick on Kyle and understand exactly what they’re doing on defense and he’d kind of give it away," Sanchez said. "[It’d be] obvious he’s coming on the blitz, so we’d adjust the protection and you’d send [tackle] Wayne Hunter out there and he’d just knock him over. That’s what happens your rookie year. Now, he’s moving all over the place so it makes it a lot more difficult. He’s come through a couple times clean and totally fooled us."
Perhaps Vernon Gholston should take notes. Instead of blaming the coaching staff and pouting when he struggled as a rookie and got his playing time reduced, Wilson got motivated and worked his tail off with Darrelle Revis in the offseason.
So far, I have liked what I have seen from Wilson. He has been very good in the preseason. Jim Leonhard's interception looked to me like Wilson's work. He was in good coverage and forced a high throw. What I have also really liked is Kyle's tackling ability, which he has shown. That is important in the slot. Slot receivers break either left or right in front of you frequently. Those result in completions no matter the corner. Sound tackling to minimize a gain is essential.
Wilson becoming a rock as the nickel is key for the Jets. They want to attack defensively. which leaves corners very little help. To be a cornerback in a Rex Ryan defense is to be one on one an awful lot. Having Darrelle Revis and Antonio Cromartie on the outside will help. Adding a dependable guy in the middle to handle the third receiver makes the defense that much more effective. A lot of other contenders are deep at wide receiver. The Jets want to have as many guys they can trust one on one as they can get.