He may be a Jet, but Geno Smith said he has made giant progress in his transition from West Virginia’s spread offense to Gang Green’s West Coast offense.
“I’ve already made a giant leap, coming from a spread system where the biggest transition for me is gonna be the footwork,” Smith said on the NFL Network’s “Total Access” yesterday. “It’s not as if I can’t do it, it’s the fact that I haven’t done it enough. So the good amount of reps that I got in rookie camp, mini-camp, OTAs has helped me make that leap and transition. I was able to get in with the first team and do some really good things.”
Smith, who is competing with Mark Sanchez for the Jets’ starting quarterback gig, has one thing in mind.
“I’m still working towards that goal of being the starting quarterback. It’s a great opportunity,” Smith said. “I’m in a great, great place, a great organization and I look forward to the future and the things to come.”
Smith was selected by the Jets in the second round with the 39th pick. After offseason speculation about Sanchez’s future with the team, the veteran was not traded or released (helped out by David Garrard’s surprise retirement). Smith, however, will have an opportunity to relegate Sanchez to clipboard duties during the season.
“Now I got some time off to think about it, to go back and study my playbook which I did a pretty good job with during that time there, and then be prepared for camp,” Smith said. “I have an opportunity to fight for a starting job. In a great place right now so I look forward to it.”
Smith also said the rookie symposium was a good experience and he learned valuable lessons from veterans. But Smith was non-committal about whether he would attend Sanchez’s annual “Jets West” camp in California where the offensive players go to work out and bond before the season saying, “we’ll see.”