Garrett Wilson’s competitiveness, ‘thirst’ the reason that ‘sky’s the limit’ for Jets receiver

Jets wide receiver coach Shawn Jefferson said what everyone around the NFL has observed about wide receiver Garrett Wilson after his first two seasons in the league: “The sky’s the limit for this kid.”

“He makes the hard plays look routine,” Jefferson said pointing out a trait Wilson shares with the really great receivers ahead of practice on Monday.

The coach said that he was “amazed” by that when he came to New York, and after seeing the likes of Calvin Johnson and DeAndre Hopkins – players he coached in the past – make routine look easy, it was “a special player” in Wilson who “does it in a way that it’s a lot easier than what they did.”

“The way he contorts his body, he’s never out of position, it’s crazy. It’s a gift,” he continued. “I’m very fortunate to be coaching him, I just gotta be careful that I don’t screw him up.”

Jefferson added: “He’s a stickler for the details, and he’s very thirsty for it. So you better be on your job as a coach. Because he wants to know why.”

In that vein, he called Wilson “a coach’s dream,” highlighting the third-year pro’s competitiveness and intensity as a shining attribute.

“He’s a go-getter,” Jefferson said. “I’ll give you an example, we’re getting ready to go scrimmage Washington out there and he comes to me on Monday, is like, ‘Turn me loose Thursday. Turn me loose.’”

In that practice, Wilson made several nice catches for big gains and scores, exploiting the Commanders’ struggling first-round pick from last year Emmanuel Forbes.

“I just absolutely love it,” Jefferson said of Wilson’s mentality. “It’s just every day he’s ready to go, it’s a joy. Cause you don’t find that in this day and age. He’s always ready to go and he loves competing.”

Quarterback Aaron Rodgers has likened Wilson to Davante Adams, and while Jefferson doesn’t like to get into similarities or comparisons between receivers, said the fact that Rodgers sees Wilson like Adams is “a good thing” for the two who only got four plays together last season.

“We’re [more] comfortable than where we were last year,” Wilson said of the offense as a whole to SNY Jets Reporter Jeane Coakley. “With that said, we still got a lot of room to grow, which is probably the most exciting thing about it ‘cause I feel like we’re in a good spot.”

On the veteran quarterback, Wilson said “he puts the ball where it needs to be every time” and his job is about how he can “be on his details, how can I be at that spot right on time.”

“Those are things that I’m focusing on week-to-week,” he added. “I’m excited because this growth – what comes with playing with a guy like that – isn’t something that everyone gets to experience in this league… now it’s up to me to take full advantage of it.”

On Mike Williams

While Williams is recovering from an ACL tear he suffered in Week 3 last season, he has “been very attentive” in the WR room and shown he has grasped the playbook.

Jefferson recounted how he put Williams in a walkthrough because he had not done that before in training camp and was thinking this was his moment to “grab him.”

“Get him in this walkthrough, hopefully, he screws up, great moment for me to coach him,” Jefferson said, shaking his fist in a demonstrative fashion. “He didn’t miss a beat, he knew everything. So he’s been been coming along. It’s day-by-day, but I think he’s ahead of schedule.”

On his rehab and return to the field, head coach Robert Saleh said the plan is to “take it slow” and reintegrate him over a “couple weeks.”

“It’s really gonna be not on him, but just making sure that he’s 100 percent, no different than what we did with Breece [Hall],” Saleh said Monday. “It wasn’t until midpoint that we started getting Breece if you think about it midway through the season when we started getting him involved in the pass game and the run game when we put that heavy load on him.

“We want to be smart with Mike, he’ll do a great job communicating with us. The more he wants to push, the more we’ll push him.”

On Malachi Corley

“Has been picking up the playbook pretty good,” Jefferson said, adding that he’s been picking up well on things, “it’s just a matter of him getting the little intricate fundamentals and details down pat.”

Corley, Gang Green’s third-round pick this year, tallied four receptions for 27 yards in the preseason opener against Washington.

“It was good to see him out there in the game make some plays and I think you guys saw, as well, how physical a runner he is with the ball in his hands,” he said. “And I think that’s gonna be a huge part of his game that we welcome.

“We talk about a style of play and he fits that style of play, being physical with the ball in his hands.”

Jefferson is “satisfied with his progress,” but “he has a long way to go.”

“He’s learning, he’s still under construction,” he said, adding that his physicality has been a good sign. “It’s been my experience that as long as you’re physical, you’re ahead of the learning curve right there, it’s about the mindset.”

On Allen Lazard

Jefferson called the second-year Jets wideout like “a second coach in the room.”

“He has been A-plus for me,” Jefferson said of Lazard. “Works his butt off, very attentive in the classroom, does a great job with the younger guys getting them up to speed on the plays, on the finer details of it.

“Since Day 1, all he’s done is just shut up and just been making plays. And I’m excited about him going forward, I really am.”