Steve Serby

Steve Serby

NFL

Why you should resist the temptation of Geno Smith

To Jets Nation today, the eve of a New Year, Geno Smith is the Hope Diamond in the rough. There might even be some Jets fans who go through life wearing green-and-white-colored glasses who feel better this second about their pup quarterback than some depressed Giants fans feel about their two-time Super Bowl MVP quarterback. If only because Smith finished on the upswing while Eli Manning dropped off the elite face of the earth and, for once in his life, couldn’t finish a game or season.

Manning will bounce back, he always does, while Smith, assuming he will be the starter in 2014, has a chance to take the next step as long as GM John Idzik gets him some skill-position playmakers and keeps continuity in the offensive coaching staff.

But a glance back at Jets quarterback history paints a cautionary tale involving most of the would-be phenoms and reminds me not to jump on the Geno bandwagon just yet. Let’s not put him in Canton just yet.

JOE NAMATH: OK, let’s skip him. Can’t possibly help my case.

RICHARD TODD: Namath’s heir apparent. Too thin-skinned to follow a legend in New York.

MATT ROBINSON: Briefly ousted Todd before off-field mischief that he hid from Walt Michaels resulted in a thumb injury and exile to the bench following the 1979 season opener. More moxie than arm. Nice Fu Manchu, though Namath’s was better.

KEN O’BRIEN: Very bright. Fine arm. Except he was drafted instead of Dan Marino. And his lack of mobility led to him taking a beating behind some porous offensive lines.

BROWNING NAGLE: The Browning Rifle. Broadway Browning. My bad. You need more than an arm to play in this league. But if it’s any consolation, I bet the young Brett Favre, chosen just ahead of Nagle by the Falcons, would have given in to temptation and imploded in New York. Nagle eventually cost Brice Coslet his job, because Boomer Esiason couldn’t save it.

GLENN FOLEY: Boy, did Bill Parcells love his moxie. Until the freckle-faced Red Rifle replaced Neil O’Donnell, too placid for Tuna, and couldn’t handle the physical or emotional requirements of the job of franchise quarterback, which led to the Vinny Testaverde Era.

CHAD PENNINGTON: Got to wait two years behind Testaverde and came out smoking. Cerebral and fiery, often head-butting offensive linemen during pre-game introductions. Durability and arm strength were his Achilles’ heels.

KELLEN CLEMENS: A second-round 2006 pick by Mike Tannenbaum and Eric Mangini, after Vince Young, Matt Leinart and Jay Cutler had gone in Round 1. Average arm. Didn’t have the “it” factor to take over from Pennington, which led to the thankfully brief Brett Favre-Jenny Sterger Era.

MARK SANCHEZ: Four road playoff wins in his first two years. The Sanchise. Or not.

OK, enough of the killjoy section. Allow me to present the reasons Jets fans can dream about Smith being their crown jewel:

ARM: He can make all the throws. We heard the same thing about Sanchez, but the ball comes out of Smith’s hands with more zip. Former Jets GM Terry Bradway raved about his arm after the draft.

LEGS: More of a weapon in his arsenal than anyone knew. He looked more like RG3 circa 2012 Sunday in Miami than the 2013 version of RG3 did, for whatever that’s worth.

HEAD: Smith is a gym rat who pushes to be a student of the game because he wants to be great.

INTANGIBLES: Smith’s resiliency following his benching and three-game meltdown impressed everyone. He accepted the coaching of Marty Mornhinweg and David Lee and never flinched. The difference between Smith in the first Miami game and the rematch was eye-opening. Like Bill Parcells always used to say, if your quarterback isn’t a fighter, you have no chance.

Smith carries the same belief in himself you sense in quarterbacks and athletes armed with swag. It can be infectious in the huddle and in the locker room.

Much like Eli Manning and Derek Jeter, he is the same guy every day, rain or shine. He seems to relish the New York stage, and the big, bad New York media doesn’t scare him. He handles himself with poise and generally knows what to say.

LEADERSHIP: Smith isn’t t afraid to point the finger of blame at himself. Teammates appreciate that in their quarterback and are therefore more apt to follow him.

So there is plenty to like. Plenty of encouraging signs. He has learned the importance of ball security through trial and error. He has learned how to play the game naturally by using his instincts instead of being a robot.

It’s just that it is too early to go all-in on the kid. His late-season surge lessened the urgency for the Jets to select a quarterback in the first round in favor of a go-to receiver.

But if they fall in love with one, if Team Idzik rates one a can’t-miss, they shouldn’t hesitate. It’s just that … they better be right for a change. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has been throwing an offensive party lately in his quarterback-driven league, and it’s time the Jets crashed it with a big-time quarterback.

With a Hope diamond who doesn’t turn out hopeless.