Bill Belichick found something nice to say about Zach Wilson — just not a lot.
Wilson is taking harsh criticism as the Jets sit at 1-1 after Sunday’s 30-10 loss to the Dallas Cowboys.
On Wednesday, Belichick, the longtime New England head coach, was asked about the challenges of facing the Jets in Week 3 at the outset of his press conference.
Belichick was full of praise for return man Xavier Gipson and a “disruptive” defense, while specifically citing C.J. Mosley and Sauce Gardner.
He also lauded the direction skills of punter Thomas Morstead.
He then squeezed in a word or two on Wilson, who is back as the starting quarterback with Aaron Rodgers likely out for the season with a torn Achilles.
“Pretty athletic quarterback. We’ve seen him before,” Belichick said.
While the first half of the statement is debatable, the second half certainly is not: Wilson has faced the Patriots four times in his young NFL career, twice in 2021 and twice last year.
In those games, Wilson has thrown a total of two touchdowns and seven interceptions while being sacked 11 times.
He is completing just 50.9 percent of his passes vs. New England and his QB rating vs. the Patriots is 50.6.
Wilson’s worst performance against the Patriots came in Week 11 last year in a game the Jets lost, 10-3.
Wilson completed just 9 of 22 passes for 77 yards and pointedly answered “no” after the game when asked if he let his defense down.
He was subsequently benched and apologized to the team for his demeanor.
Belichick deflected questions about Rodgers and if he wished he had the chance to scheme against him, instead saying he is worried about “who is out there.”
The Patriots are 0-2 after close losses to the Philadelphia Eagles and Miami Dolphins.