FLORHAM PARK, N.J. (AP) — Frank Reich understands Garrett Wilson's frustration. He also embraces it. And the New York Jets offensive coordinator wants to do something about it.
He's trying, he insists. As Wilson waits patiently, doing his best to hold his tongue.
“Garrett is the ultimate team player and the ultimate pro, and I’ve seen that from Day 1,” Reich said Thursday. “In his moments of frustration, I’m not down on the sideline, so I don’t see all
of them.”
Then Reich, who calls the offense from upstairs in the coaches' booth during games, broke into a smile.
“But I hear about them,” he said. “I understand. ... He’s a fiery competitor and he knows he’s a playmaker. And we do, too.”
Reich said Wilson has been “great to work with” and is one of the tone-setters of the offense.
“As coaches, we’ll tell you, we love that feistiness, we’re not afraid of that,” Reich said. “Now, is there a line that you shouldn’t cross? Yeah. But Garrett’s a pro, he knows that. I think he handles it perfectly. So, I don’t mind it when guys make a little bit of noise. I like when they make noise, you know what I mean?
"Because you believe in your team, you believe that everybody’s a team-first guy and Garrett’s at the front of the line as far as being team first. So, you can be team first and know that you’re a dog and that you better get the ball. Both those things can be true, and they are in Garrett’s case.”
Wilson's statistics tell a skewed story: Heading into Sunday's game against Miami, his 35 receptions are the most in the AFC and rank ninth in the NFL. His 48 targets are second in the AFC and tied for 15th in the league.
It's not so much about how many times Geno Smith is throwing Wilson the ball. It's when, and how the Jets are going about it.
In their 26-19 loss at New England last Sunday, Wilson had just two targets through three quarters. He saw four more in the fourth quarter when New York was desperately trying to get back into it, and he finished with four catches for 27 yards.
“AG is always in my ear if Garrett hasn’t gotten the ball for a little bit,” Reich said of coach Aaron Glenn. “He’s like, ‘Hey, don’t forget, boom, get our playmakers the ball,’ that kind of thing, which is good. We’re trying to get it to him as early and as often as we can.”
Reich, a former NFL quarterback and longtime offensive coordinator, knows it's sometimes easier said than done.
“He’s an unbelievable player, so we need to get him the ball,” he said of Wilson. "I think we’re doing that at some level. Can we do it more? Sure, I want to get it to him.”
Reich added that it has created opportunities for others at times, such as rookie Omar Cooper Jr. having six catches for 103 yards and a touchdown last week. But Wilson, who's in his fifth NFL season, is already one of the most productive wide receivers in franchise history. And the Jets' offense is not quite humming along, ranking 27th with 18.7 points per game and 23rd with 196.2 yards passing per game.
Wilson has been careful to not come off as selfish by publicly questioning the game plans or play-calling. He has made it clear, though, he believes he can make a difference whenever he has the ball in his hands.
Wilson also thinks it should happen more and earlier in games.
“You have that confidence to be productive when you’re called upon again, and then just kind of showing, reminding everyone that this is why I’m at this point,” Wilson said. “And it sounds stupid because it’s like a reminder, but everyone is good, obviously, at this point, but it’s real now. Your teammates feel that, your coaches feel that and they think they can call upon you again.
"And for me, it’s kind of just getting my feet wet early and then, you know, let’s ride.”
Wilson said Reich and Glenn “got it covered” when asked if he has needed to talk to them about coming up with ways to get him more consistently involved.
“It’s just about, you know, taking advantage of what we do get, what looks we get, beating that look,” Wilson said. “And me having a sniper mentality when it is that play where I have a chance to have an impact on the game, you've got to be spot-on. You can’t miss.”
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