This kid got screwed so bad

And he seems like a good kid who works his ass off. I'll always be bummed that his career got cut off before it ever really left the ground because I will go to my grave believing he would have thrived in this offense. But what really matters is that he has his health and that he got out of football before something worse happened.

Wish the dude the best.

because the first thing people are going to remember are the fumbles.

But this kid flashed bigtime potential. He was one of the most explosive RBs ever tested at the combine and it showed up on the field. He had insane burst and although small, he had good power.

I see a lot of people on here say "he was just a KR, not a RB". I find that to be soooooooo stupid. This kid was definitely a legitimate RB with a few elite tools. His patience and vision were questionable so I'm not saying he was destined to become a star or anything, but he flashed some bigtime potential at the RB position and it's a shame he couldn't stay on the field.

We'll always have the Saints game.

I agree. I really thought that Wilson was going to be an impact player in the vein of DeSean Jackson or Darren Sproles-- a guy who can find the end zone in a variety of ways and on any play.

IIRC, that was his goal after his tenure with NYG was over. Man, I wish him well.

Wilson is young, has his health (assuming he doesn't get hit too much), and has the millions of dollars he pocketed from his contract. Yeah he had to give up football but in the grand scheme of things that could add years to his life. All things considered I think he's done alright.

In comment 12166116 Osi Osi Osi OyOyOy said:

Quote:

because the first thing people are going to remember are the fumbles. But this kid flashed bigtime potential. He was one of the most explosive RBs ever tested at the combine and it showed up on the field. He had insane burst and although small, he had good power. I see a lot of people on here say "he was just a KR, not a RB". I find that to be soooooooo stupid. This kid was definitely a legitimate RB with a few elite tools. His patience and vision were questionable so I'm not saying he was destined to become a star or anything, but he flashed some bigtime potential at the RB position and it's a shame he couldn't stay on the field. We'll always have the Saints game.

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Agree with Osi and Paul Blake above, Wilson clearly had potential to be an upper tier NFL RB. Shame on him though he didn't pick up pass blocking sooner...

What drives me nuts is folks who consider him a blown draft pick by JR... How can one predict injuries? Jeez that's not on JR! At 32 Wilson was a fine shot at an exceptional athlete, even by NFL standards, who could seriously tote the rock and catch it...

A game changer... So elusive... So quick and fast at the same time. Deceivingly strong. Would have been a threat at the goal line coz he could jump over everyone. Sad he got hurt. Glad he's still running.

Remember, Wilson was the last pick in the first round. The crazy money ends a lot earlier than that. He was paid the guaranteed money from his rookie contract, roughly $5.4MM. He got about $3.7MM in 2012 (including his signing bonus), and $1.7MM for the two following seasons. I don't think he was entitled to termination pay for a career-ending injury, because he collected his full salary the year after he played his last game. So the $5.4MM is probably a pretty full accounting of his football income, and I don't recall him getting many endorsements, despite the end zone flips. After taxes, agent fees and other expenses, his net was probably around what Eli Manning takes home in a month or two.

In comment 12166185 Big Blue Blogger said:

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Remember, Wilson was the last pick in the first round. The crazy money ends a lot earlier than that. He was paid the guaranteed money from his rookie contract, roughly $5.4MM. He got about $3.7MM in 2012 (including his signing bonus), and $1.7MM for the two following seasons. I don't think he was entitled to termination pay for a career-ending injury, because he collected his full salary the year after he played his last game. So the $5.4MM is probably a pretty full accounting of his football income, and I don't recall him getting many endorsements, despite the end zone flips. After taxes, agent fees and other expenses, his net was probably around what Eli Manning takes home in a month or two.

I think that depends on your definition of rich. To most of us here, and most of the country that would qualify as pretty rich.

In comment 12166185 Big Blue Blogger said:

Quote:

Remember, Wilson was the last pick in the first round. The crazy money ends a lot earlier than that. He was paid the guaranteed money from his rookie contract, roughly $5.4MM. He got about $3.7MM in 2012 (including his signing bonus), and $1.7MM for the two following seasons. I don't think he was entitled to termination pay for a career-ending injury, because he collected his full salary the year after he played his last game. So the $5.4MM is probably a pretty full accounting of his football income, and I don't recall him getting many endorsements, despite the end zone flips. After taxes, agent fees and other expenses, his net was probably around what Eli Manning takes home in a month or two.

Let's hope he did something intelligent with the money he did pocket. If someone walked up to me and handed me a few million, I'd be excited about the investment options and pursue them , hopefully he did too!

In comment 12166185 Big Blue Blogger said:

Quote:

Remember, Wilson was the last pick in the first round. The crazy money ends a lot earlier than that. He was paid the guaranteed money from his rookie contract, roughly $5.4MM. He got about $3.7MM in 2012 (including his signing bonus), and $1.7MM for the two following seasons. I don't think he was entitled to termination pay for a career-ending injury, because he collected his full salary the year after he played his last game. So the $5.4MM is probably a pretty full accounting of his football income, and I don't recall him getting many endorsements, despite the end zone flips. After taxes, agent fees and other expenses, his net was probably around what Eli Manning takes home in a month or two.

Yeah, let's take up a collection for him. Poor guy. Only made $5.5 Million. Shoot, I can make that in only 110 years.

Just that he's pretty far down the list of "Athletes who got rich without earning it". And the cap damage to the Giants was modest. The real pain, for both sides, is in missing out on what might have been.

has his career ended abruptly before the start of his third season, then it is a mind-boggling comment to say that his team got screwed more than he did.

in McAdoo's offense, especially with Beckham stretching the field!

Offense. Such a shame. Glad he's got his health.

he's set for life. Not gonna boohoo
he did leave a lot of money on the table, though.

I don't want to kick a guy while he's down, but...the best thing for his long term image was exactly what happened. He was fast, but he was far from complete. His ceiling, IMO, was significant contributor. His image will forever be a stud cut down before he had a chance.

...depends on the view you take of the stenosis. Was it a pre-existing condition? Was it one of the reasons for his ball-security problems? Might it even have affected his blocking or his ability to get tough yardage?

The simple view is just "If not for that problem, his ceiling was x", based on what he showed when healthy - here and especially at VT. Equally valid, though is: "He had this problem all along, so his real ceiling was x".

what we expected from him the day before we heard about the stenosis/neck injury.

What I saw led me to expect a significant contributor, not a stud. a track star who put pads on. Opinions may vary.

because the kid had so much upside and we'll never know what he could've been able to do. He did make a lot of money and has his health, so he should be OK going forward.

The Steve Smith injury probably bothered me even more. The ugly ending in Philly just made things worse.

...I figured the fumbling and crappy blocking were fixable. That would leave a breakaway threat whose field vision might still be open to question. So, who was a good comp for Wilson's upside potential? Jamal Charles? Ahman Green?

but part of that was that the RB never seemed to be a big receiving threat in Gilbride's offense. With McAdoo, who knows?

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He was a great athlete who had trouble understanding the playbook, a weak blocker (in part because he didn't know where he was supposed to be) and had trouble holding onto the ball. And he was undersized.

I'd still love to have him as a KO returner and 3rd down/situational weapon, but I never viewed him as an every down back.

he had desire and he had heart. I think he would have eventually overcome his impatience to the hole and his fumbling issues. He wouldn't be the first by any stretch.

tough to watch...Think the snow left me too much time on my hands.
tough - ( New Window )

its hard to find a hole where there isn't one. If thats a skill he had to learn, he sure wasn't getting any help and probably wouldn't have last year either. Williams didn't.

Very True