The New York Jets vowed to get more targets for Geno Smith to work with in 2015 and that is exactly what the team did. Prior to the offseason starting, the Jets had Eric Decker and a very expensive Percy Harvin. After several adjustments, the Jets now haven Brandon Marshall and Devin Smith added into the mix with Harvin gone. As the pressure mounts on Smith to be successful this season, will the wide receiver rotation be good enough to bail him out?
According to Bleacher Report, the New York Jets could have one of the more intriguing receiving groups in the league. Decker and Marshall take over the top two spots while Smith and Jeremy Kerley battle for the third spot in the rotation. DeVier Posey, TJ Graham and Chris Owusu will be added into the mix as well with tight end Jace Amaro. The pressure is on Smith to be a star early for the Jets. Right now, Geno Smith is the presumed starter for the team and he needs all of the help he can get. Owner Woody Johnson expressed full confidence in the quarterback to imrpve.
"He's going to mature," Johnson said, via the New York Post. "He's not going to be making rookie mistakes anymore and he's not going to be making sophomore mistakes anymore, hopefully. If he can carry over the way he finished last year, when he played against the Dolphins (in the season finale) he played OK. So if he can keep that going we're good. We're going to get him more targets."
Not only did the Jets boost the receiving game, they also made necessary adjustments to the ground game. The Jets had already signed Stevan Ridley to a free agency contract, but there is lingering doubt regarding his health. Ridley is coming off an ACL injury which hurt his run on the open market. As a result, the Jets agreed to a trade deal for Zac Stacy from the St. Louis Rams after the team drafted Todd Gurley. The Jets were quick to say the trade had nothing to do with the health of Ridley, but it is easy to see there were questions of whether or not he could play immediately.
All of these weapons put Smith in a make-or-break season. New York is not releasing the quarterback, but drafting Bryce Petty means they will not hesitate to move on sooner rather than later if necessary. Until Ryan Fitzpatrick gets healthy, Smith is the man in charge.
Meanwhile, Jets general manager Mike Maccagnan is making it clear that veteran pass rusher Muhammad Wilkerson is not going anywhere. The team will try and get Wilkerson under a new contract despite having just drafted Leonard Williams in the first round.
