The New York Jets recently made headlines by trading for quarterback Geno Smith of the Las Vegas Raiders, ahead of their anticipated drafting of Fernando Mendoza. The move reunites Smith with the franchise that drafted him all the way back in 2013.
After already having parted ways with Justin Fields, many anticipated that Smith would be the starting quarterback in New York for the 2026 season, and on Sunday, that notion was confirmed.
“Jets Coach Aaron Glenn, in a conversation with @nflnetwork this morning, says definitively that Geno Smith is their starting quarterback,” reported Judy Battista of NFL.com on X, formerly Twitter.
For several years, Smith had something of a career resurrection with the Seattle Seahawks in the NFC West, leading the team to a playoff appearance and turning himself into a solid starter in the NFL, which opened the door for him to sign with the Las Vegas Raiders last offseason.
However, unfortunately, that success did not carry over to his time in Las Vegas, as Smith suffered through arguably the worst season of his career, and the Raiders finished with an abysmal record, which opened the door for them to get the number one pick in the upcoming draft.
The Jets are hoping that the tough season in Las Vegas was a blip on the radar for Smith and not a sign of things to come. The Jets were also among the worst teams in the NFL this past season, and are looking for some semblance of stability at the quarterback position as they try to turn themselves into a competitive team for the first time in well over a decade.
Their efforts to do that will continue with the upcoming NFL Draft in late April.
