Former NFL MVP Says He’d Draft BYU QB Zach Wilson Over Clemson’s Trevor Lawrence

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – Former NFL MVP and Super Bowl champion quarterback Joe Theismann said that he’d draft BYU’s Zach Wilson over Clemson Tigers QB Trevor Lawrence.

During an interview with CBS Sports’ Amanda Guerra, Theisman discussed which quarterback he’d take with the No. 1 overall pick if he were in charge of the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Jacksonville owns the No. 1 overall pick in April’s 2021 NFL Draft.

“Would you take him over Trevor then?” Guerra asked.

“Honestly, yes. Yes. Real close,” Theismann answered. “We’re sort of splitting hairs a little bit here. But yeah, I would as a matter of fact.”

“I just love the way he throws the football,” Theismann said. “It’s hard to teach. We’ve seen people learn to perfect it a little bit. But he has all the natural skills. He’s got a live arm. He’s got a strong arm. He can put touch on it. He can gun it. He’s big. He’s six-three. He’s not a small guy. He moves around with great athleticism and I just think that to me from watching him play quarterback, he looks really ready.”

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Theismann’s continued to praise Wilson’s game and said the former BYU signal-caller “checks all the boxes” for him.

“I just think that coming into this particular draft, Zach looks like he’s got — he checks all the boxes for me,” Theismann added. “Personally, my choice, my guy.”

Zach Wilson over Trevor Lawrence?

Former NFL MVP Joe Theismann breaks down why he thinks the BYU gun-slinger is the best QB in the draft.@AmandaGuerraCBS | #SuperBowl pic.twitter.com/QE6Z8XO1KL

— CBS Sports HQ (@CBSSportsHQ) February 3, 2021

Zach Wilson vs. Trevor Lawrence

Both Wilson and Lawrence are entering the 2021 NFL Draft following excellent junior seasons. Each player was their team’s starting quarterback for the majority of the past three seasons after taking over the starting quarterback job during their freshman campaigns.

2020 Record

Wilson: 11-1

Lawrence: 9-1

2020 Passing Yards

Wilson: 3,692

Lawrence: 3,153

2020 Passing Touchdowns

Wilson: 33

Lawrence: 24

2020 Interceptions

Wilson: 3

Lawrence: 5

2020 Rushing Yards

Wilson: 254

Lawrence: 203

2020 Rushing Touchdowns

Wilson: 10

Lawrence: 8

Career Record (including non-starts)

Wilson: 20-10

Lawrence: 38-2

Career Passing Yards

Wilson: 7,652

Lawrence: 10,098

Career Passing Touchdowns

Wilson: 56

Lawrence: 90

Career Interceptions

Wilson: 15

Lawrence: 17

Career Completion Rate

Wilson: 67.6

Lawrence: 66.6

Career Rushing Yards

Wilson: 642

Lawrence: 943

Career Rushing Touchdowns

Wilson: 15

Lawrence: 18

Career Awards

Wilson: Famous Idaho Potato Bowl MVP (2018), SoFi Hawaii Bowl MVP for BYU (2019), Boca Raton Bowl Offensive MVP (2020), finished in the top ten in Heisman Trophy voting (2020)

CRITICS: Zach Wilson isn't an NFL quarterback!

Zack Wilson: *shows them video of this*#BYUFootball #BYU @kslsports pic.twitter.com/kubPWzItmG

— Jeremiah Jensen (@JJSportsBeat) October 25, 2020

Lawrence: CFP National Champion (2018), CFP National Championship Offensive MVP (2018), three-time ACC Champion (2018, 2019, 2020), Heisman Trophy runner-up (2020), AP Third-team All-American (2020), ACC Player of the Year (2020), ACC Offensive Player of the Year (2020), ACC Football Rookie of the Year (2018), two-time First-team All-ACC (2019, 2020), Second-team All-ACC (2018), Archie Griffin Award (2018)

FIVE FIRST-HALF TOUCHDOWNS FROM TREVOR LAWRENCE 😱 pic.twitter.com/iAW4oKDc52

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) October 17, 2020

About Joe Theismann

Theismann played quarterback for Washington for more than a decade. During his storied career, he reached the pinnacle of the sport, winning Super Bowl XVII.

Here are some of Theismann’s career accomplishments:

• Super Bowl XVII champion
• NFL Most Valuable Player (1983)
• Two-time Pro Bowl (1982, 1983)
• First-team All-Pro (1983)
• NFL Offensive Player of the Year (1983)
• Bert Bell Award (1982)
• NFL Man of the Year (1982)
• Named one of the 70 Greatest Washington Football Team players
• Washington Football Team Ring of Fame

Theismann finished his career throwing for 25,206 yards, 160 touchdowns, and 138 interceptions with a completion rate of 56.7 percent. He played in 167 games, including 124 starts.