Former NFL draft bust turned football analyst Ryan Leaf got into it with some Jets fans about the development of quarterback Zach Wilson. After dealing an angry Jets fan a sick burn on Twitter, he had more concise thoughts on Wednesday.
Appearing on Maggie and Perloff, Leaf said that he’s tired of hearing comparisons between his failed NFL career and other young quarterbacks who struggle. He explained that he recognizes that he was an “absolute dumpster fire” in every aspect from on-field play to off-field behavior.
As for Wilson, Leaf believes that the Jets quarterback must not have handled things well enough behind closed doors if it led to him being benched.
“I’m sick and tired of people making comparisons to me and these young QBs who haven’t gotten a chance yet. I was an absolute dumpster fire… Jets fans, it’s going to be all about HOW he deals with it because I dealt with it the most toxic way you can…” Leaf said.
Ryan Leaf certainly is the go-to guy when discussing all-time quarterback draft busts. But he might be right in his assessment that Wilson and other quarterbacks who struggle in their career deserve more time to develop than he did.
Leaf infamously combined terrible on-field production with an unwillingness to mature. That not only ended his NFL career within four years, it sent him into a downward spiral that landed him in prison for three years before his miraculous career revival as an analyst.
Zach Wilson isn’t nearly as bad for the Jets as Leaf was for the Chargers and Cowboys, but for fans he’s not much less disappointing to them.
Is Leaf making a good point about Zach Wilson?