The New York Jets got surprisingly solid quarterback play from Josh McCown before he broke his hand this season, but the 38-year-old was only a temporary solution for the team. Heading into the offseason, there’s a possibility that the Jets could start completely fresh at the quarterback position.
Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News has been led to believe that neither Bryce Petty nor Christian Hackenberg will be with the Jets in 2018. McCown could end up coming back for one more season, but he is scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent.
Petty started three games after McCown injured his hand, and the third-year pro completed just 51.7 percent of his passes and threw one touchdown compared to three interceptions. He’s obviously not ready to start in the NFL, and it appears as though he may never be.
Hackenberg has been an even bigger disappointment for the Jets. The 2016 second-round pick did not take a single snap this season, and Jets coach Todd Bowles said it was never a consideration to give the former Penn State star playing time down the stretch.
“When you don’t win the No. 2 job (in the preseason), it’s kind of a foregone conclusion that you’re not going to play (in the regular season),” Bowles said after Sunday’s loss to the New England Patriots. “When you lose the No. 2 job and you got two people ahead of you, how’s it going to fluctuate when you lost it honestly?”
Mehta notes that there are people within the Jets organization who are hopeful that Hackenberg can develop, but it’s clear the team is not going to enter the offseason expecting him to seize the starting QB job. Things seem to have changed quite a bit since before the season on that front.
The Jets could take a run at someone like Kirk Cousins if he becomes available, but they won’t have a whole lot to offer. They may end up having to draft yet another quarterback early on, and Josh Allen of Wyoming or Heisman Trophy winner Baker Mayfield could be two names to watch.
