Jason Burgos
New York Jets head coach Aaron Glenn badly wants Geno Smith to have a big season in 2026 and is trying to will it into existence with his public praise of the quarterback.
In his first season as head coach, Glenn made NY Jets fans believe free agent addition Justin Fields could finally reach his potential and be a star for Gang Green. In the end, the former Chicago Bears first-round pick had the worst season of his career and was traded to the Kansas City Chiefs this month to serve as their new QB2.
In 2026, the coach will go with another new QB1. This time, it will be former Las Vegas Raiders starter Geno Smith. Unlike Fields, Smith has had success in the league and is a two-time Pro Bowler. However, he is still coming off a season where he went 2-13 and threw a league-leading 17 interceptions. Nevertheless, Glenn really wants NY Jets fans to believe Smith could be a huge difference-maker next season.
“There’s something about a quarterback with a chip on his shoulder,” Glenn told SNY at the NFL Meetings this week. “And he’s proven a lot in this league of what he’s done. Especially when you take in his time in Seattle. He fits exactly what we are trying to do. We’ve created an identity. The foundation of our offense is pretty good now.
“… I just feel like he’s the guy who’s going to lead us to the promised land. The guy who’s gonna touch the ball more than anybody else. I know he’s had his struggles. A lot of quarterbacks have their struggles.”
Aaron Glenn is hitching his NY Jets future to Geno Smith
Could Smith have a bounce-back season in 2026? It’s definitely possible. He was playing behind, arguably, the worst offensive line in the NFL last season, and he does have a Comeback Player of the Year Award on his resume. However, that would also be an opinion that overlooks the obvious.
Before he turned his career around with the Seattle Seahawks, Smith was seen as a draft bust who evolved into a journeyman QB in the league. When he won CPOTY honors in 2022, he threw 30 touchdowns. He has come nowhere close to that number since and had 19 last year. Furthermore, his interceptions have gone from 11 in 2022 to 17 last year.
If the NY Jets were getting Smith a year or two after his big season in 2022, then maybe he could overcome the weaknesses of their offense and lead them to relevance and playoff contention. However, he is four years removed from that career year and turns 36 in October. An age point when even consistently good QBs go into a numbers decline.
There is far more evidence that Smith will be a little better than the bad he was in 2025, as opposed to getting back to the player he was in 2022. Glenn is choosing to overlook the obvious, and it is making him look delusional. That will likely cost him his job in the next eight months because he is creating expectations the QB won’t be able to reach next season.
