Geno Smith was unable to make it through a full half in his 2016 debut as the starting quarterback for the New York Jets, as he suffered a knee injury on Sunday and was forced to miss the remainder of the game. Where does that leave the team going forward?
Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports that the Jets do not believe Smith’s knee injury is serious and only held him out as a precaution.
#Jets believe QB Geno Smith’s knee is “fine,” source said. MRI is considered a precaution, though an important one. So was keeping him out.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) October 24, 2016
Smith was replaced by the freshly-benched Ryan Fitzpatrick, who turned in one of his best performances of the season. Fitzpatrick completed 9 of 14 passes for 120 yards, one touchdown and no interceptions. He led the Jets to a 24-16 win over the Baltimore Ravens.
If Smith is healthy enough to play against the Cleveland Browns next week, the Jets officially have a mess on their hands. A report prior to Sunday’s game indicated Smith was not going to be on a short leash, but can the team just ignore the way Fitzpatrick played? The 33-year-old was borderline defiant with some comments he made after the game, which could be perceived as a positive or negative. We don’t envy the position Todd Bowles has found himself in.
