Before Monday night’s game against the Cardinals, Jets quarterback Geno Smith admitted to being antsy about not playing, especially given the team’s struggles.
On Tuesday, coach Todd Bowles brushed off Smith’s concerns.
“I don’t have any thoughts on a backup player saying anything,” Bowles told reporters on Tuesday. “They’re backups for a reason, and if they get a chance to play, they better prove themselves to be worthy of playing, regardless of who the person is.”
Smith may have done enough on Monday night to get more of a chance, very soon. Bowles made it clear on Tuesday that, despite circling the wagons around Ryan Fitzpatrick after Monday night’s loss, a change could be made.
“After the game that’s always going to be status quo because I’m never going to tell the media anything before I meet with my coaches and my G.M. and the rest of the staff,” Bowles said. “So, everything is status quo until we have our meeting on Monday evening. But [Smith] did show some promise when he was in there. He understood the game plan. He did good for the drive he was in there.”
Could that mean Smith will start Sunday?
“We’re going to talk about more than that, but there is a possibility every week that there will be some changes made player-wise,” Bowles said. "[W]hen I discuss it with the staff, when they know, then everybody else will know. If I decide to make a move, they’ll know tomorrow.”
So, basically, Smith may be getting what he wanted, more than a year after his last starting gig evaporated in the blink of an eye -- and the swing of a fist by IK Enemkpali.