The New York Jets traded for Geno Smith in March, sending the Las Vegas Raiders a sixth-round pick in return and bringing back the franchise’s starting quarterback from 13 years ago.
Smith had been the Jets’ starter from 2013 to 2015 until a locker room dispute, in which a teammate punched him and fractured his jaw, sidelined him and allowed Ryan Fitzpatrick to take over as the starter. Smith returned in 2016 as Fitzpatrick’s backup before tearing his ACL and spending more than half a decade bouncing around the league.
Then, after Russell Wilson walked out the door, he completely resurrected his career in Seattle. From 2022 to 2024, he went 27-22 as the starter, threw for 12,226 yards and 71 touchdowns, and completed more than 68% of his passes. His resurgence was highlighted by a 2022 campaign in which he threw for 4,282 yards and 30 touchdowns while leading the NFL with a 69.8% completion rate, earning his first Pro Bowl selection and NFL Comeback Player of the Year honors, all at the age of 32.
Now, after a disappointing season in Vegas, he’s back with the organization that first drafted him, and on Wednesday, June 17, he received a huge vote of confidence from the Jets’ new offensive coordinator, Frank Reich.
“I am just so impressed by Geno. I cannot express that enough. I know we haven’t played any games yet. We’ve got a long way to go. We’ve got a lot to prove. Everybody has a lot to prove. But he is on point. His preparation is top-notch. His football mind is elite,” Reich said.
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Reich spent over four decades in the NFL as a player and coach, and has worked with the likes of Peyton Manning, Phillip Rivers, Andrew Luck, and Matt Ryan. The fact that he’s already speaking so highly of Smith after only a few months together speaks volumes.
After helping the Philadelphia Eagles win their first Super Bowl in 2017 as the team’s offensive coordinator, Reich took over as head coach of the Indianapolis Colts (2018-2022), and the Carolina Panthers (2023), making this his first OC gig since that Eagles title run.
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The Jets’ season kicks off in Nashville on Sunday, September 13, against the Tennessee Titans. From there, they will play the Green Bay Packers back at MetLife Stadium before going back on the road to face the Detroit Lions and Chicago Bears.
Nobody’s expecting much from the Jets in 2026, but Geno has the chance to kill the “washed” talk that once followed him around New York a decade ago.