Zach Wilson opens up about the bold jersey choice that symbolizes his fresh start with the Miami Dolphins.
IMAGE: Miami Dolphins quarterback Zach Wilson (0) works during training camp at Baptist Health Training Complex. / Sam Navarro / Imagn Images
Zach Wilson’s fresh start in Miami isn’t just symbolic – it’s now stitched into the front and back of his jersey. The Dolphins quarterback is donning No. 0 this season, a bold, unconventional choice that makes him the first NFL quarterback in the modern era to wear zero on game day.
It wasn’t some grand marketing move or deep philosophical statement. For Wilson, the decision boiled down to a blend of availability and originality.
“I’m a single-digit guy,” Wilson explained during Day 2 of Dolphins training camp. “There weren’t many single digits left.
I thought zero was a cool choice. I don’t know if any quarterbacks have really had zero before.”
Turns out, they haven’t – at least not in this era. The last quarterback to wear zero in an NFL game?
Johnny Clement, who played way back in the 1940s for the Chicago Cardinals and Pittsburgh Steelers. Clement, fittingly, went by the nickname “Mr.
Zero.”
There’s been a close call in recent memory. Marcus Mariota briefly sported zero during a Washington Commanders preseason stint but switched to No. 18 before the 2024 regular season began. Mariota had his reasons – as a ten-year vet still trying to prove doubters wrong, zero served as his personal reminder that motivation sometimes starts at nothing.
That’s not Wilson’s vibe – at least not exactly.
While he didn’t tie the number to outside expectations, the 24-year-old did open up about rediscovering confidence under head coach Mike McDaniel.
“I feel like sometimes I lost that in myself,” Wilson said. “Understanding how talented I can be. It’s good to feel like you have some belief in somebody.”
And that belief wasn’t just lip service. It was central to why Wilson chose the Dolphins when the next chapter of his NFL journey came calling.
“I felt wanted,” he emphasized. “I felt like they really wanted me to be here.”
Wilson’s path to Miami is well-documented – a former No. 2 overall pick whose time with the New York Jets never quite clicked. But this is clearly a reset, not a rewind.
And that number on his back? It’s one more piece of the reinvention.
Bradley Chubb already wears No. 2 for the Dolphins – the number Wilson wore with the Jets. Tua Tagovailoa, Miami’s starter, owns Wilson’s old BYU jersey number, No.
- Zero just happened to be open – and oddly perfect.
Wilson didn’t even realize Mariota had briefly worn it prior.
“I’ve met him once before and he’s a great guy,” Wilson said. “He’s got a lot of swag.”
Wilson’s only just stepping into training camp with his new squad – and he knows there’s work to be done. But if jersey numbers carry a little meaning…and if zero really does represent a new beginning…he’s all in.
“That’s the plan,” Wilson said when asked if he intends to stick with it.
This is Zach Wilson 2.0 – or maybe, fittingly, Zero.0. Either way, it’s a fresh look, a fresh feel, and for the first time in a while, he sounds like a quarterback ready to turn the page.