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          Zach Wilson escapes, then scores on longest QB run in New York Jets' history

          • Rich Cimini, ESPN Staff WriterDec 26, 2021, 01:40 PM ET
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              Rich Cimini is a staff writer who covers the New York Jets and the NFL at ESPN. Rich has covered the Jets for over 30 years, joining ESPN in 2010. Rich also hosts the Flight Deck podcast. He previously was a beat writer for the New York Daily News and is a graduate of Syracuse University. You can follow him via Twitter @RichCimini.
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          When in doubt, run.

          New York Jets quarterback Zach Wilson, who has struggled in the passing game, delivered one of the best plays of the year Sunday -- and he did it with his legs. He scored on a 52-yard run against the Jacksonville Jaguars, giving the Jets a 6-3 lead at MetLife Stadium. It was the longest touchdown run by a quarterback in Jets' history.

          On a third-and-5, Wilson was blitzed -- a six-man rush. The Jaguars' containment was poor, allowing Wilson to escape to his right. The right side of the field was wide open, so he kept running ... and running ... and ...

          He appeared to be going out of bounds at the 33-yard line -- safety Rudy Ford thought he was -- but Wilson faked Ford and kept going. At the 10, he eluded safety Andrew Wingard, completing his historic run. He reached a top speed of 17.78 mph, according to NFL Next Gen Stats.

          In a game that pitted the top two picks of this past spring's NFL draft -- QBs Trevor Lawrence of the Jaguars and Wilson -- it was the Jets' longest run since running back Isaiah Crowell's 77-yarder in 2018. It was the longest run by any quarterback since Marcus Mariota -- then with the Tennessee Titans -- had an 87-yarder against the Jaguars in 2015.

          "It was the longest touchdown run in probably my whole life, too," Wilson said. "It's kind of ironic how it works out in the NFL, but they brought man pressure right there. I had a couple options. I thought the pocket was kind of closing, tried to step up, just kind of found a lane. Fortunately we had all of our routes kind of going opposite of where I got out and everyone was in man, and there was just no one left in front of me.

          "Once I got to the sideline, I was planning on just stepping out of bounds and he didn't hit me or push me or whatever, so I kind of just held onto the sideline and kept going right there and then by that point, I knew there was really no one left, so I just tried to cut back and tried to make a play."

          The Jets kept the fireworks going in the second quarter when Braxton Berrios returned a kickoff 102 yards for a touchdown.