This is the first in a nine-part series examining the Jets’ needs position by position as free agency gets set to begin the afternoon of March 11. We start with the most talked about position on the team – quarterback.
Quarterbacks
 Currently on roster:
Geno Smith
Age:Â 23
2013 stats:Â 247-of-443 (55.8 percent), 3,046 yards, 12 TD, 21 INT, 4 fumbles
Mark Sanchez
Age:Â 27
2013 stats:Â N/A
Matt Simms
Age:Â 25
2013 stats:Â 16-of-31 (51.6 percent), 156 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT
David Garrard
Age:Â 36
2013 stats:Â N/A
2014 free agents:Â Garrard
Overview:Â There is plenty of uncertainty around this position, as usual with the Jets. Smith had a rookie year filled with ups and downs. The feeling inside the organization is the team has no choice but to stick with him for another year to see what he can do. The Jets are encouraged by Smith’s performance in the final month of the season when he was the NFL’s second-highest rated passer.
Sanchez appears to be a goner. His $13 million cap number is too much for a possible backup. There remains a chance that the Jets could bring Sanchez back at a lower salary, but it feels like both sides are ready for a fresh start.
That leaves the Jets looking for a viable veteran backup for Smith. I don’t think Garrard will be back. Michael Vick has been the name that is picking up steam in the rumor mill. He knows offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg’s system and has plenty of experience to draw upon in helping Smith develop.
Offseason priority rating (1 to 5 with 5 being the highest priority):Â 4
Possible targets:Â Vick, Josh McCown, Matt Cassel, Shaun Hill, Chad Henne, Jimmy Garoppolo (draft), Zach Mettenberger (draft), Logan Thomas (draft)
Costello’s call: The Jets have to give Smith another shot to show what he can do. He had a promising start to his rookie season, bottomed out, then finished strong. No one can say with certainty how good (or bad) Smith is.
Vick makes a lot of sense because of his familiarity with Mornhinweg’s system. That being said, I don’t think that’s the direction the Jets will go in. If I were John Idzik, I would make a push for Hill, who has proven to be a good backup in Detroit. If Smith goes down or is ineffective, the Jets should feel good about someone like Hill taking over.
I don’t think drafting a quarterback should be a huge priority. The Jets have Simms already as a developmental guy. They expect to have 12 draft picks, so if a quarterback they like is available in the later rounds they should grab him. The Jets went to training camp with four quarterbacks last season, and I could see them doing the same this year.
Coming Thursday:Â Running backs