Who Will Win New York Jets' QB Battle?

The New York Jets have aggressively addressed almost all of their major needs headed into the 2015 season, but the one that they haven't addressed could be the one that has the biggest impact on the outcome of their season—for better or worse.

The Jets have added talented cornerbacks, wide receivers, pass-rushers, defensive linemen and offensive linemen, but without a quarterback, all of those moves may still not be enough to get them into the playoffs.

With any luck, either Geno Smith, Ryan Fitzpatrick or Bryce Petty will emerge from a training camp battle as a proven man. That being said, there's only so much one can prove in the months of May through August. One thing they can prove, however, is that they're better than the other options at the same position.

Geno Smith

The incumbent starter should not be considered the front-runner to retain his job. Not with the way he's been playing.

Over the past two seasons, Geno Smith has shown flashes of becoming a good quarterback. In the final four games of the past two seasons, Smith has compiled a passer rating of 83.6 (2013) and 105.3 (2014), but playing well in the final four games is no good unless he's also playing well in the first 12. 

There are still areas of Smith's game that need work; his footwork is still problematic, as is the lack of speed with which he goes through his progressions. Fortunately for Smith, new Jets offensive coordinator Chan Gailey has made a career of highlighting the strengths and masking the weaknesses of his quarterbacks.

A run-and-shoot style offense, with some pistol formations sprinkled into the mix, will give Smith the benefit of read-option plays that will take advantage of his athleticism and force defenses to respect the run. Smith should get one more chance in the Jets offense, but continued ineptitude should result in the Jets promptly pulling the plug.

Ryan Fitzpatrick

No one was all that surprised when the Jets traded with the Houston Texans for quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick. The Jets had (and have) a need at quarterback, and Gailey is familiar with Fitzpatrick from their time together with the Buffalo Bills.

If anyone is going to execute Gailey's offense in a pinch, it will be Fitzpatrick. He has plenty of experience in the system, which gives him an advantage in areas such as understanding the playbook and familiarity with the terminology of the offense. Of course, there will most likely be an open competition for the job in training camp, but at 32 years old, the long-term upside is much greater with Smith than Fitzpatrick.

Fitzpatrick has been erratic throughout his 10-year career, and the results were fairly disastrous the last time he manned a Gailey-coached offense. Gailey made him a $60 million man in the first seven games of the 2011 season (97.8 rating in first seven games), but Fitzpatrick quickly came unraveled at that point (66.5 in final nine games). He forced too many passes into tight coverage and was unable to hit enough long passes to make up for his mistakes.

Again, some of those problems will fall to the wayside with Gailey at the helm, but even he can't hide all of Fitzpatrick's weaknesses. 

Bryce Petty

The Jets may have drafted Baylor quarterback Bryce Petty in the fourth round, but they drafted him for a reason. Whether they see him as the solution now, or hope that he is the solution later, Petty's development will be closely watched by anyone associated with the Jets.

In fact, according to Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News, former Baylor offensive coordinator Philip Montgomery thinks Petty could win the job immediately.

"I know how driven he is," Montgomery said. "I can see him getting in there and doing great things and winning the job. It's going to be more on the Jets organization and their coaching staff just to see how fast they really want to progress him. I know he'll be prepared either way."

It's not all sunshine and rainbows with Petty, who will have to prove that he's not just a product of Baylor's one-read system as outlined by NFL.com's Lance Zierlein. He may need a year on the bench to grow into an NFL quarterback, but there's enough potential to have faith that with time, he could grow into a starter. ESPN's Jon Gruden (via NFL.com's Mike Huguenin) thought Petty might have the "best arm talent in this draft." 

For the time being, Geno Smith should be considered the front-runner for the job, but a training camp battle could play out any number of ways. 

Unless otherwise noted, all advanced statistics provided by Pro Football Focus.