Jarrett Bell: Jets' Geno Smith flashes poise and inexperience in first start

NotSatoshiNakamoto · Sep 9, 2013

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — It was make-or-break time for Geno Smith.

The New York Jets trailed by two points when they got the football back at their 20-yard line with a mere 34 seconds on the clock Sunday at MetLife Stadium.

They were also out of timeouts.

As Smith trotted onto the field with these circumstances at the end of the first regular-season game of his NFL career, the Jets rookie quarterback issued a directive to veteran guard Willie Colon.

"Just give me some extra time," he demanded.

"I got you," Colon shot back.

There wasn't much more to be said. Yet following a dramatic 18-17 victory against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers — won on a 48-yard field goal by Nick Folk with 2 seconds left after Smith scrambled for 10 yards and drew a personal foul — Colon stood at his locker getting pressed for more details.

"He didn't caught up in the moment," Colon offered.

Where were you when he said it? Who else was there? Did he say anything else?

"It's not a movie," Colon countered, a bit exasperated. "This was not Rudy or Remember The Titans."

It wasn't Hollywood. But it was surely a gripping, athletically human drama with an undeniable Big Apple backdrop.

A lot of people didn't give the much-scrutinized rookie a chance. He got the starting assignment by default, the theory suggested, because Mark Sanchez suffered a preseason shoulder injury.

Some felt that an "unprepared" Smith — whose August reps were significantly reduced by a sprained ankle — was destined to fall flat on his face.

Well, guess what: The kid looked like he belonged Sunday.

"The kid's composure is ice," Colon said.

Added wideout Santonio Holmes: "He's poised."

That calm presence when it got sticky against the Bucs is what stood out the most to the men in the huddle with Smith, and it will show up on videotape.

There were enough examples to make this official ... at least for one week.

Just before halftime, Smith rolled right and scanned the field on a broken second-and-16 play. He found his gutsy tight end, Kellen Winslow II, on the second level of the progression for an 18-yard gain. This worked just like they had talked about it. They improvised.

Winslow remembers how Smith put it: "You just give me a window, and I'll find you."

On the next play, he found K2 for a 7-yard touchdown that cut the lead to 14-12 at halftime.

In the fourth quarter, Smith rolled out of the pocket buying time, then zipped a laser to Clyde Gates for 17 yards, the biggest gain on a 65-yard drive that resulted in a go-ahead field goal.

He had several plays like that, when deft instincts moved him to either float for time or scramble and, in some cases, slide. He made a lot of good decisions, not always automatic for rookie quarterbacks playing a faster game.

Smith, who has been gracious and polite amid the questions in the intense New York market, is clearly living right.

On the final sequence, after a 25-yard completion to Winslow and a quick spike to kill the clock, he bolted to the sideline to stop the clock again after a 10-yard gain.

That's when Bucs linebacker Lavonte David shoved Smith to the turf even though he was clearly out of bounds.

That silly 15-yard penalty moved the Jets into range for the winning kick.

"It was bad on their part, on that guy's part," Smith said, "but it was good for us."

Of course, on a day when he completed 24 of 38 passes for 256 yards and was sacked five times, it was hardly perfect.

Smith fumbled near his goal line while attempting to pass in the second quarter, gift-wrapping the 5-yard TD run on the next snap by Doug Martin. On the next series, Smith grossly overthrew Chris Ivory on a check-down pass and was intercepted by David.

The rookie was repeatedly harassed by inside linebacker blitzes, if not by the linemen.

But he kept getting up.

"I was for sure when I was hitting him early on, that he would get rattled," said Tampa Bay defensive tackle Gerald McCoy. "But the guy kept getting up. I was like, 'Damn, how many more times do I have to hit you?' "

Smith remained humble in victory.

"I don't like to brag about myself," he said. "Resilience is something you have to have at this position."

In more ways than one. Especially in New York.

With his impressive debut, Smith, whose next game comes Thursday night on the road against the New England Patriots, bought himself the benefit of the doubt.

"It's not about me," Smith said. "It's about my teammates and this organization. So it's good to get a win for the Jets. But we've got to put this one behind us and get prepared for a tough game coming up on Thursday night."

It was never automatic that Sanchez — according to ESPN, he will seek a second opinion from James Andrews for a torn labrum even though coach Rex Ryan says is day-to-day — would get his job back when he got healthy.

And it was never automatic that Smith, the quarterback of the future, would keep the job for the short term.

Yet Smith passed his first test, which makes for a pretty good reality flick.
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http://www.usatoday.com/story/sport...013/09/08/geno-smith-jets-buccaneers/2783075/

NotSatoshiNakamoto · Sep 9, 2013

And people wonder why there's so much negative press on the Jets. It's what people are interested in.

Maverick · Sep 9, 2013

Nice article! I like that Geno is starting to gain the confidence of his teammates

Section 227. Row 5 · Sep 9, 2013

Pretty interesting article.

JetBlue · Sep 9, 2013

Maverick said: ↑

Nice article! I like that Geno is starting to gain the confidence of his teammates
Click to expand...

who is to say he hasn't had it? just because the media wants to tell another story doesn't mean his teammates haven't been confident in him.

Brook! · Sep 9, 2013

A very well written article. What I read so far since last night is making me more hopeful for the season. I hope Geno can keep this positive vibe going. Thanks for posting it.

NY Jets68 · Sep 9, 2013

So it is possible to write an article about the Jets without anonymous sources and making sh*t up. You paying attention cimini and mehta?

Thanks for posting this.

The 1985er · Sep 9, 2013

With his work ethic and once he gets comfortable in this offense his potential is down right scary.

101GangGreen101 · Sep 9, 2013

I'm glad I was wrong about this kid (so far) - he's shown the ability to make plays when they count the most.

I always knew the guy loved the game of football, the way he talks and carries himself. He takes his job very seriously. He's a straight gamer, gym-rat - I knew this about him but man I didn't think he would be ready for the starting gig this fast.

May he continue to improve. And may we actually develop a QB right this time. Keep Rex and MM around for the foreseeable future and GET THIS KID SOME WEAPONS

Jarrett Bell: Jets' Geno Smith flashes poise and inexperience in first start

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Jarrett Bell: Jets' Geno Smith flashes poise and inexperience in first start

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