By Glenn Naughton
During his introductory press conference as head coach of the New York Jets, Todd Bowles was asked to address quarterback Geno Smith and his place on the depth chart. Bolwes had this to say about his young signal-caller:
Obviously, he was a great college quarterback. Going in with us just getting here, we’re going to evaluate with Geno as well as everyone else on the team. When we get a good feeling and get the coaches in the building, we’ll sit down and do it then
Unless offensive coordinator Chan Gailey was having a little fun with the New York media or playing some head games with his quarterbacks yesterday, it would seem that the Jets had their “sit down” and have already decided that Geno Smith is their starting quarterback moving forward.
Gailey addressed Jets scribes at Florham Park and announced that Smith would be the starter with Ryan Fitzpatrick serving as the back-up. Gailey even went so far as to say that it had been the plan all along. A bit of an odd statement given Bowles’ non-committal approach over the past several months when asked to address the quarterback position. True or not, the comments are sure to get some Jets fans riled up.
Jets Offensive Coordinator Chan Gailey addressed the media at Florham Park and said there will be no quarterback competition.
When Smith was handed the job last season after a faux training camp competition, the Jets faithful weren’t too thrilled over the fact that the second-year quarterback wasn’t going to be asked to out-perform a veteran after struggling as a rookie. Having moved on from the Rex Ryan era, many expected to Smith be asked to earn the starting nod by out-playing his competition.
By his own admission, Gailey said he didn’t watch Smith’s rookie film, but said he was impressed by what he saw from him in 2014, a season in which Smith threw 13 touchdowns and 13 interceptions.
Don’t be surprised if this comes up again in the near future as Bowles will likely be asked about Gailey’s position contradicting his own. All that matters in the end though, is that Gailey has Smith ready to go when the season kicks off at home against the Cleveland Browns on September 13th at MetLife stadium.
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