Could a broken jaw lead to a breakout year? Jets quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick thinks the answer is absolutely.
Fitzpatrick, who became the de facto starter once IK Enemkpali fractured Geno Smith’s jaw, tells Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News that the journeyman-turned-starter-turned-journeyman could have a coming-out party at 33.
“I don’t think there’s any doubt about that,” Fitzpatrick said. “So much of the game for the quarterback is the mental side of it. Everybody always talks about my arm and how horrible it is. I promise . . . you can put on some tape [and see] that I can make all the throws that you want me to make or that I need to make. . . . I see myself continuing to get better rather than declining.”
Once Fitzpatrick became the full-time starter in 2010 with the Bills, he had three straight 3,000-yard seasons, maxing out at 3,832 yards in 2011. He earned the kind of contract about which Michael Bennett would have loudly complained, and the Bills opted to move on in lieu of paying a $3 million roster bonus in March 2013.
It’s not out of the question that Fitzpatrick will have a solid year; while 33 is essentially 66 for running backs, quarterbacks are proving that they can perform at a high level after blowing out two-and-a-half-dozen candles, in the sweet spot between an enhanced understanding of the game and the remaining physical abilities.
Regardless, the bar is low -- which may be good for Fitzpatrick.
‘That’s been the perception every year,” Fitzpatrick said regarding the notion that he doesn’t belong in the NFL. “Somehow I keep sticking around and finding new jobs. So I don’t really listen to the perception. I hear it, for sure. I just kind of shrug my shoulders and make sure that I focus on what I can control and focus on getting myself better.”
If it works, maybe the Jets will ultimately be glad that Geno Smith wasn’t available to start the season.