Can Geno Smith turn back the clock in his second stint with the New York Jets?
According to Jeremy Fowler of ESPN, the New York Jets are "optimistic" about how the passing game looks so far.
The Jets acquired QB Geno Smith from the Las Vegas Raiders in the offseason. Frank Reich is the new OC and Smith has Garrett Wilson, Adonai Mitchell, Omar Cooper Jr., Mason Taylor, Tim Patrick, Kenyon Sadiq and Breece Hall as playmakers to pass the ball to.
"The Jets haven't had a top-20 offense in over a decade, but people with the team are optimistic about how the passing game looks so far," Fowler wrote. "Smith is a big part of that. I heard from more than one person on the ground that Smith is 'throwing the s---' out of the ball. On one red zone sequence last week, Smith hit five different receivers, including fullback Andrew Beck in the back of the end zone for a score. Coach Aaron Glenn likes that. 'Guys have confidence that when the routes are stretched down the field, that he's going to let it rip,' Glenn said of Smith."
Smith is looking to turn back the clock in his second stint with the Jets after leading the NFL in interceptions last season with the Raiders. Smith's best seasons in the NFL came with the Seattle Seahawks in 2022 and 2023. He made the Pro Bowl in 2022 and 2023 and won the 2022 AP Comeback Player of the Year Award.
A West Virginia product, Smith enters this season with 22,168 passing yards, 124 passing touchdowns and 89 career interceptions in the NFL. His starting record is 42-56-0.
Reich, who has been in the NFL for a long, long time, has enjoyed working with Smith thus far.
The veteran coach has been impressed by the QB's "football mind."
"It's hard for me right now to not be overly, what's the word, effusive with praise, but I am just so impressed with Geno," Reich said, via Jets.com. "I know we haven't played any games yet, we've got a long way to go, we've got a lot to prove. But man, he is on point. His preparation is top-notch, his football mind is elite, the way he's communicating in the huddle and at the line of scrimmage and the way he communicates in the quarterbacks room."
The Jets went 3-14 last season in Year 1 of the Glenn era. Let's see how they do in Year 2 with Reich and Smith in the fold.
