Wayward Wilson has help to get on track at home
When Kevin Fountaine heard the Giants gave Isaiah Wilson his next (and maybe last) shot in the NFL, he felt optimistic.
Not because they lack a long-term answer at right tackle. Nothing to do with on-field opportunities and everything to do with Wilson — who was mixed up with drugs and arrested on a DUI after a high-speed police chase as an NFL rookie — returning close to his roots as a Brooklyn native who starred under Fountaine’s coaching at Poly Prep.
Professional-athlete homecomings often present a fork in the road: A support system fills a void that leads to a turnaround, or old connections resurface from the woodwork to be around fame and money, create distractions and set the path to self-destruction.
“With the support of Mom and everybody close by, I think it’s a better fit for him than when he was on his own,” Fountaine told The Post. “His mom always pushed the education — that’s why he stayed at Poly — and he really respects his mom and loves his mom.”
Sharese Wilson did not return multiple messages left in the past week, but she told The Post before the Titans drafted her son with a first-round pick in April 2020 that Isaiah “is the quintessential poster child for goals. He had it in his mind this is what he wanted to do.”
Wilson was cut by the Dolphins just three days after he was acquired in a buy-low trade from the Titans. The short leash was telling because Dolphins head coach Brian Flores is a Poly graduate and Dolphins strength and conditioning assistant coach Jimmy Mangiero’s father, Dino, was a football coach at Poly early in Wilson’s career.
The Giants signed Wilson to the practice squad last week even though it is clear whether he needs conditioning to get within range of his listed 330 pounds.
“Everything we’ve given him, he’s done upto-task so far in our protocol,” offensive line coach Rob Sale said. “We’re going to get him in shape, get him caught up to speed in the meeting room, so then we can really get a good evaluation on him.”
The support system set up for Wilson extends beyond his house. Andrew Thomas is the Giants’ left tackle and one of three former Georgia teammates around Wilson. Defensive line coach Sean Spencer recruited New York City — and Wilson — for Penn State and texted Fountaine last week to make it clear: Position means nothing. He will help Wilson, too.
The grandmother of one of Spencer’s close friends was Wilson’s childhood baby sitter. All common connections help build trust.
“He needs someone to lean on. When that’s the case, I’m going to try to help him out,” Spencer told The Post. “When you build a bond with a player, hopefully you keep that over time. The [phrase] ‘it’s a business’ is overrated. It’s our responsibility in leadership positions that if we have a chance to change somebody and affect someone’s life then we should do it.”
Where has Wilson, 22, been since March? Not on a 90-man roster during OTAs or training camp.
Fountaine said Wilson came home to his mother, a health care professional, and his father, a construction worker. He was spotted around his younger brother’s athletic events at another local high school in the spring. After falling out of touch following Wilson’s DUI charge, Fountaine and Wilson are exchanging messages again.
“It was really shocking the way the wheels unraveled,” Fountaine said. “Like I told him, ‘That’s why there are erasers on pencils. This is your second chance.’ So, I’m hoping he does what he has to do.”
Fountaine, who invested the extra time in Wilson to take him to football recruiting camps, doesn’t know how to explain the sudden spiral. In high school? Maybe he needed some “tough love” but otherwise …
“He was the perfect gentleman,” Fountaine said. “He handled the hype of being a fivestar really well. He wanted to unveil he was going to Georgia at Poly’s Christmas assembly so he could do it in front of all his classmates and the school. Never had an ounce of problem there.”
Fountaine maintained relationships with Thomas’ college coaches and says he never heard word of trouble. NFL security teams performing due diligence called before the 2020 draft and “they all said he was clean and no red flags.”
“He’s finding himself here,” Spencer said. “The story is not written the way he wanted it. I think coming back to his home state, the people around him can really be there for him. Now, he has to do what he has to do to stick this thing out.”
Wilson’s NFL career went awry almost from the minute he agreed to a four-year contract with a $6 million signing bonus.
He was put on the COVID-19 list twice, played in one game and reportedly twice went AWOL and was found partying.
“COVID affected so many people in so many different ways,” Fountaine said. “Who knows if he felt the pressure of being a No. 1 pick with real big expectations, and he wasn’t really playing well at the time? I think being on the practice squad is one of the best things for him because he can develop. If he can make the roster it would be even better because then no other team can pluck him.”
Wilson’s “love of football” has been questioned in NFL circles. If he doesn’t show it with the Giants — coach Joe Judge runs a grueling program to weed out pretenders — it could be the deal-breaker.
“It seemed like he loved it at Georgia — he’s throwing himself into the hedges after the game,” Fountaine said. “I think he liked it a lot here, but it’s hard to say because he’s such a big kid and it came easy for him.”