Geno Smith Will Compete with Ryan Fitzpatrick for Jets Starting QB Job

Many came into the offseason believing the New York Jets' regime change would spell the end of Geno Smith's starting status at quarterback. When the team acquired veteran Ryan Fitzpatrick in March, the move compounded that feeling.

Now, it appears those feelings were close to accurate, as the pair appear set to compete for the starting job. 

Head coach Todd Bowles discussed the starting quarterback job at OTAs on Wednesday, according to Dom Cosentino of NJ.com. While Bowles confirmed that Smith would be the starter heading into camp, he also was quick to point out that the job was up for grabs:

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"Chan's very matter-of-fact," Bowles said. "Come camp time, there will be competition at the spot. ... That doesn't mean it's going to stay like that."

According to Bowles, Gailey sees things as they are now—with Fitzpatrick rehabbing a broken leg, which means Smith is going to get the majority of first-team reps when camp begins in late July—as how they'll stay. Why? Because that's what Gailey is set to work with at this moment, and Gailey is focusing on the here and now, and not what might happen with the possibility that Smith might stink out the joint this summer.

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"You don't start out having two or three games getting first-team reps," Bowles said. "I view it as open competition. It's [Smith's] to lose."

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Bowles was clarifying comments made by offensive coordinator Chan Gailey on May 20, in which Gailey named Smith the starter. 

“Right now, Geno’s the starter,” Gailey said, per Brian Costello of the New York Post. “That’s the way it sits and that’s the way we expect it to be unless something happens where you get an injury or something like that that you don’t foresee.”

Smith threw for 2,525 yards and 13 touchdowns with as many interceptions in 2014. In 30 career games (29 starts), Smith's touchdown-to-interception ratio is an ugly 25-to-34.

ESPN Stats & Info noted some of Smith's lackluster numbers:

Contrast Smith's performance to that of Fitzpatrick, who has made a career out of being a steady (albeit unspectacular) option. Fitzpatrick threw for 2,483 yards and 17 touchdowns against eight interceptions in 2014, good for a career-best 95.3 quarterback rating. Football Outsiders' DVOA metric ranked Fitzpatrick 13th among qualifying quarterbacks. Smith was 31st.

Julio Cortez/Associated Press

All the statistical evidence aside, Gailey was consistent in his praise of Smith. 

“I think you see an awful lot of talent there,” Gailey said, per Costello. “If we can get him to where he puts all of that together, I don’t know how good he can be. He can be pretty good if he can put it all together.”

Anything can change between now and September. With the competition wide open, both Smith and Fitzpatrick are going to get a chance to show what they can do, and it sounds like Smith will get every chance to prove he's the man for the job. 

While Smith may have the job now, Fitzpatrick is certainly more than capable of taking it from him once he's healthy. At this point, the one sure thing is that this will be one of the most compelling quarterback battles in the NFL once training camp rolls around. 

Follow Tyler Conway (@tylerconway22) on Twitter.