Barring some sort of shocking change of heart, the New York Jets are going to fire head coach Rex Ryan as soon as the season ends. Despite the fact that Ryan has publicly defended Geno Smith and given him more than enough chances to seize the starting quarterback job, Smith is not going out of his way to defend Rex.
After Smith’s second season at West Virginia, the Mountaineers changed coaches from Bill Stewart to Dana Holgorsen. The change proved to be beneficial for Smith, and he wonders if the same will be true with the Jets.
“It is all about what you make it,” Smith said Monday, via Darryl Slater of NJ.com. “I think the toughest part about it is not being able to continue to play for the same coach, the same guy that you learned to love, you invest so much in, and you believe (in) them. To reset and readjust is a tough thing to do, but we are professionals and we have to do it. A change could be good for us all. So if it happens, when it happens, then we will see.”
In Smith’s defense, he is simply taking the optimistic approach. Everyone knows Ryan is going to be fired, so Smith is not going to come out and say the team will be worse off without Rex. Plus, the Jets are 3-12 for a reason — regardless of what certain players think about the team’s misfortunes.
While Ryan likely has no future with the Jets, Smith has one by default. Just don’t be surprised if it’s not as a starting quarterback.
