QB Petty is ready for his chance

Baylor grad says start is about team, injured McCown.

Bryce Petty is getting another chance to prove to the New York Jets that he can be their quarterback of the future.

He’s their man under center right now, at the very least, and will make his fifth NFL start Sunday against the Saints in New Orleans.

With Josh McCown out for the final three games with a broken left hand, it’s an opportunity that Petty, a former Baylor standout, has been waiting for patiently in his third season.

But he insists he’s not focused on what it could mean for him beyond this week.

“Not at all,” Petty said Wednesday after his first practice this season as the Jets’ starter.

“This right here is for these guys in this locker room. I have nothing as far as looking toward the future. This right here is for these guys in the locker room, it’s for Josh. He set a standard as to how to be a professional, how to be a quarterback.”

McCown was injured last Sunday in the Jets’ 23-0 loss at Denver and had season-ending surgery Tuesday. The 38-year-old veteran was having the best season of his 15-year NFL career with a career-high 18 touchdown passes and 2,926 yards.

Even with the Jets’ playoff hopes dwindling at 5-8, coach Todd Bowles had no plans to sit McCown in favor of Petty or second-year quarterback Christian Hackenberg —until McCown took that blow to his hand.

McCown, who quickly established himself as a team leader, spoke with Petty over the past few days and shared some advice with the young quarterback.

“Just to be me,” Petty said. “It’s not about trying to replace Josh and trying to be Josh. It’s to be Bryce and find little successes.

“Whether that’s how I approach the game, in the game, just smiling is important — understanding that it is a blessing to be here, and I think that is something I was upset with myself about last game — I don’t know if I smiled too much. I wanted to bring us back.

“Just to smile and have fun and enjoy what I’m doing.”

It’s been tough at times to do that for Petty, who has had an up-and-down ride in the NFL since being drafted in the fourth round out of Baylor in 2015.

Petty sat as a rookie, but made it onto the field last year when Ryan Fitzpatrick was hurt. He took over as the starter late in the season when Fitzpatrick was benched and Geno Smith got injured, but Petty suffered a season-ending shoulder injury in Week 16.

Neither Petty nor Hackenberg gave McCown much competition during training camp, and Petty sprained a knee ligament late in the preseason.

Nearly four months later, Petty will take center stage against the Saints — with at least 15 family members, many of them from Louisiana, in attendance.

“I know he was a baller at Baylor,” said Saints safety Kenny Vaccaro, a former Texas player who never played against Petty but follows Big 12 football. “He hasn’t played that many snaps in this league yet for me to put my opinion out on him. I know he’s a better athlete than people give him credit for. He has a strong arm.”

Petty’s biggest issues have been reading defenses and a lack of consistent accuracy. He’s working on both areas.