Geno ‘pissed’ as ‘competitor’
Geno Smith trotted onto the practice field in Florham Park Thursday morning and found himself the backup to starting quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick once again.
Though he had lost his starting position, he has not lost his competitive fire.
“I’m not disappointed. I’m kinda pissed off,” Smith said. “It’s not a detrimental thing. It’s not something where I’m pissed off at anyone because we all wanna be out there. That just adds fuel to the fire, but not in a negative way. I don’t want that to become like a headline or something like that because that’s not what I’m trying to say. It’s more as a competitor.”
Smith didn’t have to speak with the media about his demotion; he was given a choice following practice.
He didn’t sidestep any question, rather straightforwardly addressing his feeling when Fitzpatrick walked into the first team meeting Wednesday, his feeling about the contract saga finally coming to an end, his feeling about once again being a backup when there was a faint possibility he’d start.
“He’s really done an amazing job developing as a man off the field, a leader, a teammate,” wide receiver Brandon Marshall said. “It’s really moving and emo- tional for me because I’ve invested a lot of time in just trying to be there for him.”
Head coach Todd Bowles said Fitzpatrick will start Week 1. There’s no chance of him losing the job based on performance in training camp, and only an unforeseen circumstance would alter the depth chart.
“Even last year, everything that Geno went through ... that was a tough situation for him,” Fitzpatrick said. “I know it’s hard. He’s just gotta continue to work his tail off and good things are going to happen to him.”
Smith and Fitzpatrick have talked in the last 24 hours, but not about the whirlwind that was Wednesday night. Only about family matters and “normal stuff.” After all, this all feels normal for Smith. He had a feeling this was going to happen.
In order to avoid disappointment, he tried not to think about his competition’s contract negotiations. So when Fitzpatrick broke through the doors to the Jets team meeting just before 7 p.m. Wednesday, there was no mix of emotions.
It was just another team meeting that solidified a pecking order he saw coming.
“I feel for a lot of people,” Bowles said. “But I can’t help everybody.”