Somehow, the New York Jets Have Found a Way to Get Even More Jetsian

There is the absurd, the ridiculous, the unbelievable, the staggering, the laughable, the no-way-in-the-hell-that-happened. Then there is a notch just below that. It is called "the Jetsian."    

There are so many Jetsian things in New York Jets history. The fake-spike game. Bill Belichick resigning as "the HC of the NYJ" just days after accepting the job. Writing his resignation letter on a napkin, of all things. The butt fumble. Oh, the beautiful butt fumble. Rex Ryan getting a tattoo of his wife wearing a Mark Sanchez jersey. There are so many. So, so many.

But what happened Tuesday afternoon in the Jets locker room is an all-timer. If it had happened in an episode of Ballers, you would say, "Not realistic." But these are the Jets. Everything is realistic. Anything is possible.

In the locker room, quarterback Geno Smith was sucker-punched by a sixth-round draft pick and backup named IK Enemkpali. According to coach Todd Bowles' press conference, Smith was "cold-cocked, sucker-punched, whatever you want to call it."

Smith's jaw, a front-office source texted me, "was f--king shattered." I believe the technical term is "broken."

The team announced that Smith is out six to 10 weeks. My source said that Smith was having "a truly outstanding camp. This is all so stupid."

And all so typically Jetsian. I can't remember a quarterback having his jaw broken in a locker room fight. The Jets have made history again.

This comes after Sheldon Richardson's four-game suspension for violating the league's substance-abuse policy and then, allegedly, going all Fast and Furious.

Bowles' press conference describing what happened was incredible. He sounded so exasperated, like his dog had just peed on the carpet for the 10,000th time.

In some ways, the Jets are to blame for this. Which is, well, not surprising. As Pro Football Talk wrote, the Jets "knew IK Enemkpali was a character risk when they drafted him." At Louisiana Tech, he was arrested for battery of a police officer. 

He eventually pleaded to simple battery, but this is what can happen when you draft dudes with questionable character. Put another way: This is why you don't draft dudes with questionable character.

"I was just being a young. [It was] a young, hot-headed decision," Enemkpali told ESPN.com's Rich Cimini last year. "I didn't think about everything. If I knew what I know now, I would've gotten myself out of that situation. I lost my cool. That's what it was. I didn't know he was undercover, which is no excuse, but...yeah, I lost my cool.”

A year or so later, he made another hot-headed decision and as a result has entered Jets lore. The team cut him immediately after Jawgate.

Yes, there is comedic value here. People will make jokes, say things like Ted Wells will probably blame Tom Brady for Smith's broken jaw. This is a franchise that just can't seem to get out of its own way. No matter the coach. No matter the general manager. No matter who is leading, this team ends up as a punchline. A head-shaking punchline.

There is also a football aspect to this, one that's not so funny. Well, it sorta is, but not totally. Again, Smith was having a good camp—Cimini reported that he hadn't thrown a pick in practice until Monday—but that is now almost meaningless. The injury freezes that progress he was making.

Meanwhile, Ryan Fitzpatrick is now atop the depth chart at quarterback. Fitzpatrick is a nice, smart Harvard guy, but he's not the answer.

Frank Franklin II/Associated Press

This brutal punch—over a matter of a few hundred dollars, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter—means the Jets will probably again be a five- or six-win team. Once again, New York will be in splendid position for an excellent draft pick it'll screw up.

Were the Jets going to take the division over the Patriots, even if Brady's four-game suspension holds? Probably not. They likely weren't going to be better than the Dolphins, either.

What could have happened was some progression from Smith. This was a key year for him. If Smith is out just six weeks, it's still an issue, as he could miss the first two games of the regular season. That's a big deal when you're a young quarterback trying to find your way.

If he missed 10 weeks, that would put him out the entire month of September and into October. That's just not good for a young thrower. That's not really good for any player.

Bowles said in his press conference that Enemkpali punched Smith over "a very childish matter...something two sixth-graders could've handled."

Penis jokes? Yo' momma jokes? Hillary Clinton versus Donald Trump?

Dumpster fires look at the Jets and go: "Role model."

Never change, Jets. Never change.

Mike Freeman covers the NFL for Bleacher Report.