New York Jets: Geno Smith Proves He Will Be A Star

Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports

The New York Jets, just as they always do, caused controversy in the 2013 NFL Draft when they selected West Virginia quarterback Geno Smith in the second round.

The Jets already had former first round pick Mark Sanchez, who they have a ton of money invested in, and Tim Tebow. Both of the quarterbacks had been terrible for the Jets, so it looked as though they were looking for new direction with Smith.

After a bit of controversy over who would start, Sanchez ended up getting injured and the job was Geno’s. Since then, the Jets are 3-2 and are coming off a huge 30-28 Monday night victory over the Atlanta Falcons.

While Geno has had his ups and downs this season through five games, last night he was cool, calm and collected and was the reason the Jets remained in the game. He completed 16-of-20 passes for 199 yards and three touchdowns but more importantly zero interceptions.

Geno has all of the tools to be a great NFL quarterback, and he will be a great NFL quarterback in time. But in order for him to be great, he needs to settle in and the Jets need to pull their weight as a team and organization.

For starters, it will take time for Geno to get used to the NFL. This was only his fifth game, so he is still learning the atmosphere, how to read NFL coverages and still learning his own offense. It’s going to take time to get comfortable, but you can see the flashes of what he can be.

More important than Smith’s own development is the Jets cleaning everything up. They need to eliminate the circus that is New York Jets football during the Rex Ryan era. While it’s easier said than done, there is too much off the field nonsense that is difficult for a rookie to handle.

The second issue the Jets need to clear up is giving Smith some pieces to work with on offense. He has done all of this work without one legitimate NFL receiver, and the rushing game isn’t nearly what it once was for the Jets. With the way Geno has played, it makes you wonder what he could do with big time NFL talent supporting him.

It is still early in the career of Geno Smith, but for New York Jet fans who have struggled so much with watching their team as of late, the way he played last night against the Falcons has to be extremely refreshing and a great reason for optimism in the future.

Erik Sargent is a writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @Erik_Sargent, “Like” him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google.