Chicago Bears: Why Zach Wilson could be their future quarterback

Riley Nelson breakdown continued

DWC: How would you evaluate his ability to make deep throws?

RN: He is an above-average deep-ball thrower in college and can leave the ball inside at times. He’s no Russell Wilson or Joe Flacco in his prime but as long as he can get the ball out on time he shouldn’t have a problem getting the ball downfield in the NFL.

DWC: How would you assess his ability to make throws off platform?

RN: Off-platform throws are his specialty and he works them a ton. He trains down at 3DQB where they work a ton of that stuff and it shows.

DWC: Obviously his completion percentage is outstanding, but of course there is a difference between statistical accuracy and ball placement. How would you rate his ball placement?

RN: Like I said previously, his ball placement 15+ yards down the field is elite in my opinion but it’s the routine west coast style throws that he needs to tighten up.

DWC: How do you think his skill set would translate into a West Coast system?

RN: He doesn’t run west coast here so he would need some work but I have no doubt he would adapt quickly. He is not required to anticipate a lot in this offense so that would be a skill he would need to acquire and like I have said he needs to just be a dart thrower in the quick game and he isn’t quite there right now.

DWC: Mechanically, how would you rate him? Specifically, how is his footwork?

RN: Mechanically he is really good. His arm motion is natural, smooth, and quick. He doesn’t yank his head, even when he is trying to rip it. His feet are good. Really quiet, and at times almost too quiet because I feel like he could get more out of his lower half but he stays restrained and that is why he is so accurate down the field. The only knock on him mechanically is at times you can tell he is thinking about his mechanics rather than being 100 percent instinctual. But that’s okay because he will continue to get comfortable with himself and his abilities and that self-consciousness will fade over time.

DWC: Of course, I’d be interested in any other thoughts you have about Zach that I might not have drawn out with the questions above.

RN: I think he’s gonna be a good player. He is still young as a true junior and a kid who doesn’t have two whiskers on his face. I’m interested to see how he handles all of this love and hype, but so far so good. He just needs to keep his head down and not let any of it distract him.

DWC: Thank you so much for taking some time to provide us such terrific insight. We really appreciate it.

RN: Anytime