Geno Smith returns to the Jets eyeing a bold comeback after a brutal raiders collapse

Geno Smith returns to the Jets eyeing a bold comeback after a brutal raiders collapse originally appeared on The Sporting News.
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The New York Jets have handed their offense back to Geno Smith, and coach Aaron Glenn made the call fast, naming the 35-year-old his starter almost the moment a low-cost trade cleared.

The framing writes itself as a homecoming. Smith rejoins the club that took him in the second round in 2013, a draft slot he spent years treating as a snub. What the Jets are actually buying is a veteran fresh off a career-worst season, tasked with steadying a franchise that has not posted a winning record since he was hurt and pushed aside.

The math is harsh. Las Vegas went 3-14, secured the No. 1 pick, and moved on from Smith after his 17 interceptions topped the NFL, and he ranked 30th among 33 qualified passers in EPA per dropback.

He opens against the Tennessee Titans on Sept. 13 (1 p.m. ET, CBS) as the eighth player to start a season opener for the Jets in 11 years. His previous one came in 2014. No passer since the Super Bowl era began has waited longer, 12 years, between opening starts for a single franchise, per ESPN Research.

Smith sits 332 passing yards shy of moving past Zach Wilson for 10th on the Jets’ all-time list, a marker that speaks to the position’s churn more than to him. New York weighed him against Tua Tagovailoa before choosing the cheaper arm as a bridge to a stacked 2027 draft.

Brandon Marshall Saw the Punch That Nearly Ended Geno Smith’s Career

The reason the Jets trust a quarterback with this track record has less to do with his arm than with how the building responds to him. Wide receiver Adonai Mitchell calls him “the alpha in the room.” Brandon Marshall, who lived with Smith before the 2015 season, put it plainly. “You can’t push Geno over. That is needed in the locker room, especially today,” he said.

That toughness got tested early. On Aug. 11, 2015, linebacker IK Enemkpali threw an uppercut over a $600 dispute, breaking Smith’s jaw.

The QB1 job went to Ryan Fitzpatrick, and Smith’s road since has wound through backup stops with the Giants, Chargers, and Seahawks before Pete Carroll installed him as Russell Wilson’s successor in 2022. “Every single day he prepared like he was going to play the very next play,” Carroll said.

There is a tactical wrinkle here. New York imported Raiders linemen Dylan Parham and Jordan Meredith and can point to the sacks Las Vegas surrendered, yet NFL Next Gen Stats flagged pressure on just five of his 17 picks. Rebuilding the pocket may not repair the reads. Frank Reich, the fifth man to call his plays in four seasons, inherits that puzzle.

Demario Davis, back with the Jets in 2026, sees a changed man. “You have to go through a certain amount of life to get that. You can’t just buy it,” he said. Smith is not looking backward. “It means that I’ve been in this league a while. And I intend to stay here.”

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