On the cusp of joining the elite tier of NFL wideouts, Garrett Wilson received an unexpected and funny reminder that Aaron Rodgers has a lot of mouths to feed with the Jets.
Wilson played quarterback for two hours straight Sunday at the football camp he hosted at The Peddie School for about 300 children, many of whom went back to the huddle after every pass targeted for someone else with the same message for the reigning NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year: “I was open! Look at me next time!”
Yes, quarterback life is demanding.
But Wilson isn’t a diva receiver and should make it easier for Rodgers after he was the standout of Jets’ spring practices with a slew of acrobatic catches.
“I still have a lot to prove,” Wilson told The Post on the field in Hightstown, N.J., “but I’m confident in my ability, and I’m going to do whatever it takes to win. For us to get to where we want to be, I feel like I know what I have to do. I’ll be ready.”
The hype for Wilson’s second season is off the charts.
He was named the No. 1 candidate to be a breakout receiver by NFL Network’s “Good Morning Football.”
Former All-Pro receiver Dez Bryant predicted Wilson will be the top receiver in fantasy football.
Rodgers said Wilson soon could be the best receiver in the league.
“I expect more than all that,” Wilson said. “For me, it’s always been about the ultimate confidence in myself and putting the work behind it so you know it can happen when the season comes around. I’m not buying into all that stuff too much. No one’s expectations for me are higher than my own.”
In his first comments since he began catching passes from Rodgers in seven-on-seven settings under the eye of coaches — as is permitted in OTAs — Wilson expressed confidence that the offense is on the right track.
“I was trying to be a sponge, and make sure I was locked into learning this new playbook and all the nuances to it,” Wilson said. “It’s been a great learning experience for me and I’ve been able to grow a lot. Having a new offense — in a sense starting over — has been good for us. Being a young guy, I can adapt.”
Wilson is hopeful many of the receivers — an upgraded group that includes Rodgers favorites Allen Lazard and Randall Cobb as well as free-agent signing Mecole Hardman and returnees Corey Davis and Denzel Mims — and quarterbacks can find chemistry-building time and a place to meet up before training camp begins in the third week of July.
“Personally, I always have high expectations for where I’m playing,” Wilson said. “That’s how I grew up. College ball, high school, I always expected to win and go out and play good ball. That hasn’t changed this year. The rest of it is pressure from the outside, but I know inside our locker room we want to win every game. No one wants to win more than us, and that’s what’s going to help us on Sundays.”
Campers trying to pick the 1,100-yard receiver’s brain for tips were met with old-fashioned advice. Wilson’s sure-handedness — 83 catches against two drops — doesn’t come from strengthening his hands in rice buckets or on a JUGS machine.
“I told them just to make sure you are open to coaching and ready to learn,” Wilson said. “For me, it was always about competing, getting better and being around people who love the sport as much as I do. It’s just about reps. If you are not playing football, go out and do something else active to work on your hand-eye coordination.”
As Wilson imitated Rodgers by floating Hail Marys into the end zone and Patrick Mahomes by tossing no-look passes, fans clad in green and white jerseys — mostly Wilson’s No. 17 — shouted various reminders of the Jets’ new reality.
One hollered out “Bring home a championship” just before an organized “J-E-T-S Jets! Jets! Jets!” chant.
“Such a great turnout,” Wilson said. “This is the community that supports me and the people that have my back when I take the field. It’s awesome to be able to do something like this just to show a little bit of my appreciation for them.”