It is no secret that Geno Smith is playing on thin ice this season. The New York Jets quarterback is entering his third season in the league and has yet to truly show real potential to be a star. There have been flashes of potential, but nothing consistent enough that has anyone a belief in the quarterback. As a result, the Jets added two other options to the rotation, but Smith denies there is any pressure on his back entering training camp.
The Jets want pressure on Smith. The team traded for Ryan Fitzpatrick while drafting Bryce Petty late in the draft to help put depth on the roster. Any of those options could challenge Smith for the starting job as he will enter training camp as the No.1 quarterback. The Jets are giving Smith every chance to prove he is the real deal. The quarterback denies he is feeling the heat from the team.
"I don't feel any pressure," Smith said, via the team's website."The key thing is that going into (training) camp, going in with the right mindset. I feel like we have a lot of room for improvement, but I love the way we're working and competing. To have guys around me that are so, so good, it takes all the pressure off of me. I'm in competition with myself to try and be perfect. I'm in competition with Ryan, I'm in competition with Bryce, all the guys out there, the defense. I'm in competition with the guys on the offense. We all want to try and perfect our game, and we're all going to set the standard high and try and hold each other accountable."
Realistically, only Fitzpatrick is in contention to start this season outside of Smith. According to the New York Post, Petty is being viewed as a projected quarterback who could potentially take over in the future. If Smith continues to struggle all the focus will turn to Petty to develop for the seasons to come. Meanwhile, the Jets have loaded up Smith with offensive weapons that can help him be a star this year.
Both Brandon Marshall and Eric Decker have complimented the quarterback on his progress this offseason. Marshall and Smith got to work together right away once the wide receiver was traded to the team. Now they will head out for Jets West before training camp which will be critical for Smith to gain chemistry with the wide receivers and improve. If Smith cannot get the job done this season, New York will not hesitate to replace him for the future.