While the Buffalo Bills have their own concerns with retooling the roster for another run at reaching a Super Bowl appearance, at least the New York Jets are providing the sideline entertainment.
Bills Mafia can already see the writing on the wall for the disastrous position the AFC East rivals have put themselves in at the quarterback position. Geno Smith is back with Gang Green, and another rookie signal-caller should be expected to join him on the roster. To Bills fans and those of the other 30 teams around the league, it seems like just a matter of time for Smith to relinquish his starting role with the Jets to whoever that rookie may be.
Of course, Jets head coach Aaron Glenn doesn’t see it quite so simply. While it’s his duty to endorse and defend his players publicly, he went the extra mile to talk up his expectations for Smith as the Jets quarterback in 2026.
Buffalo Bills fans question Aaron Glenn’s confidence in Geno Smith
“Something about a quarterback with a chip on his shoulder. Listen, he’s proven a lot in this league of what he’s done, especially when you take that time when he was in Seattle,” Glenn said at the league meetings this week. “I just feel like he’s going to lead us to the promised land.”
To Glenn’s credit, Smith showed in Seattle what he’s capable of when the switch flips. He channeled the negative energy that derailed his early career into an impressive rebound with the Seahawks. In five seasons in Seattle, Smith threw 40 more touchdowns than interceptions and held a 28-24 record as the starter.
Unfortunately, he couldn’t rekindle the flame in Las Vegas. In his lone season with the Raiders, Smith led the league in interceptions and saw his team finish with the worst record in the NFL.
The prevailing difference between the Raiders and Seahawks is that Seattle had a strong roster. After all, the Seahawks won the Super Bowl in their first post-Geno Smith season. There was talent around Smith that allowed him to play within his capabilities and took off a ton of pressure. That didn’t exist in Las Vegas, just like it didn’t exist in his previous stops with both ‘New York City’ franchises.
That said, what promised land is Smith supposedly leading the Jets to, exactly? Surely Glenn has long-term aspirations of being the coach who finally ends the Jets’ Super Bowl drought, but realistically, he has to concede that the Jets aren’t positioned to do that yet. They are a long way off, and while Smith is a solid upgrade over the mess they fielded under center last season, it’s not as though the Jets just picked up Tom Brady or Peyton Manning off the open market and now have Super Bowl expectations.
Sure, maybe the promised land is just the postseason, but again, the Jets can’t really believe that Geno Smith is the one addition they needed to get them to that point. There is a lot of work to do on this roster before that can be the expectation.
Just doubling their 2025 win total would be a successful season for the Jets at this point. But winning six games isn’t exactly promised land territory.
Can the Jets surprise the entire league with Smith under center? Absolutely. Is there a cap on what that surprise can be? Obviously.
No, the Bills know all about hoping to reach the promised land, and they have the kind of quarterback who gives them a shot regardless of the circumstances. Until the Jets land that type of guy, Bills Mafia has little to worry about from Glenn’s Jets. They have plenty to laugh about in the meantime, though.