Jets' QB-Related Concerns Are Completely Overblown Heading Into Week 1

The situation behind Geno Smith could be a lot worse.

The Jets are in a fairly good spot with their quarterback room, despite any lingering concerns. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

As the 2026 NFL season looms, Jets fans have been asking plenty of questions regarding the quarterback room.

Can Geno Smith stay healthy for a full 17 games? Why didn't the New York Jets bring in a proven veteran backup quarterback? Do they really trust Cade Klubnik to go on an NFL field right away if something happens to Smith?

These are some of the many questions Jets fans have had over the last few days since the team cut its roster to 53 players. New York controversially left Klubnik as Smith's immediate backup, without any veteran behind him, and Bailey Zappe on the practice squad, too.

To some fans, the Jets are tempting fate by not having a proven backup plan at quarterback behind their starter—the same mistake made during the 2023 season.

But things are different now. And it's not just because the organization's expectations are lower.

Whether it's the end goal or the reality of where the league is at backup quarterback, concern over the Jets' quarterback room is becoming overblown.

The reality of QB across the NFL puts Jets' situation into perspective

Many names have been listed by Jets fans as their preferred backup quarterback. Andy Dalton, Mason Rudolph and Aidan O'Connell are just a few of them. The key belief, of course, is that the team needs to have someone who knows how to run an NFL offense and has experience doing so.

Andy Dalton is just one of the veteran QBs that some Jets fans wanted to see behind Geno Smith. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The problem with that is reality isn't always what people believe.

Quarterbacks like Dalton, Rudolph and so many others struggled mightily during the preseason and in camp. Teams may know what they will get with a veteran backup, but what they end up getting isn't very good to begin with.

Dalton, for example, has a 1-6 record in his last seven starts in the league. He has completed 64% of his passes during that stretch with 10 touchdowns and seven interceptions. His QBR has never been higher than 52 during that stretch. Those numbers won't cut it if the Jets were to sign him and throw him in for a month. All it would do is delay the inevitable.

The reality is that the Jets are either going to sink or swim with Smith. If the former Seahawk Pro Bowler plays well, New York will be good. If he struggles or gets hurt in any way, the calculus of the team changes. Nothing any veteran quarterback could do would change that.

And it brings the last point of the situation.

What's the Jets' end goal?

New York wants to be good this season. They added plenty of talent across the board to do so. But if things don't go well to begin the campaign—or something were to happen to Smith—what is the end goal that the team wants to get to?

With a veteran signal-caller, there's no guarantee they can hold the fort and stay a winner. At least with a player like Klubnik, a rookie with clear upside, there is the potential for something more. Maybe the Clemson product could be the next Dak Prescott. Maybe he could become the future savior of the team.

Having Cade Klubnik as the QB2 gives the Jets a better opportunity to assess the rookie signal-caller's potential. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

No one can try to sell themselves on the idea that the same scenario would be possible with Dalton or O'Connell. That can only work with a rookie quarterback.

And that's the biggest part. If the Jets' end goal in all this is to build their future the right way, allowing a rookie to play early on, should something happen to their starter, is the right thing to do. Either he performs well and gives the team hope, or he crashes and burns while the team looks for its franchise QB in the 2027 draft class.

At least with that path, the team is at least trying to find a bright future instead of throwing band-aids on gaping wounds.

Smith needs to stay healthy in order for the Jets to be competitive this season. If he can't, though, then the team's quarterback room is still better served by keeping Klubnik as QB2 over any other veteran.

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