The Jets are facing the real possibility that Ryan Fitzpatrick will play quarterback elsewhere in 2016 after one of the greatest single seasons at the position in Jets history.
So who would players inside the locker room prefer if Fitzpatrick ended up in, say, Denver?
"I think Geno has been humbled," former Jets guard Willie Colon -- currently a free agent -- said on ESPN Radio in New York Saturday. "I think he's been at the bottom and taken everything. I think he's ready to rise. I still have confidence in him. I think with the pieces we have around him he can be successful. Honestly, I believe that, I think Geno is a good quarterback."
He added: "If Fitz doesn't come back, I'd like to see Geno get another shot."
Colon, who has been one of the Jets' vocal leaders over the past three seasons and is mulling his own retirement, was asked to address Robert Griffin III as a possible option as well.
"A guy like RGIII, you know, for him he hasn't been on the field, coming into a new system and building that chemistry - you hear Brandon (Marshall) talk about that all the time. Chemistry and communication is everything for a quarterback and a receiver," he said. "And a guy like that has to get into a rhythm, he has to get into a rhythm with Chan Gailey and he has to understand the whole dynamic of the offense. And that is going to take time. So I understand Brandon's argument like 'Hey, me and Fitz have built this, it's working great, get him back here and let's continue to do what we've been doing."
The Jets are in a weird situation at quarterback. They are stuck between an accounting problem, a perception problem and the fear of once again stepping out into the abyss that is the NFL's free agent quarterback market. Griffin would seem like a terrible addition in Chan Gailey's quick strike offense, but would he come any cheaper than what Fitzpatrick is asking for? And what is worse -- overpaying a journeyman quarterback in his 30s who has flamed out on big contracts in the past, or striking out on a potentially dynamic young quarterback with plenty left in the tank?
And where does Geno Smith fit into all of this? In many ways, he's the most interesting piece of the puzzle -- a guy who was touted as the 2015 starter before getting cold-cocked by a teammate in the locker room. One has to respect Colon for saying what he did (and this is not the first time he's backed up Smith in public, either). He understands that Smith may be the likely option anyway, and that a good team stands behind their quarterback no matter what.
