Brian Bassett, theJetsBlog.com Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | TJB Posts
Welcome to the Bryce Petty era of the New York Jets, Bent! Exciting times ahead!!! Jets head coach Todd Bowles said after last week's game that the next four games that the plan was going to be about Petty … since … I guess the Jet brass finally realized they were terrible.
My question is … is four games enough to know what Petty is? You could see him learning some lessons the more he played on Monday night, but is that enough time for the Jets to see if Bryce Petty is a worthwhile long-term solution? And what does that really matter when they drafted a second-round quarterback this year? There was a point earlier in the year where Ryan Fitzpatrick wasn't the answer and Geno Smith was … why wasn't Petty playing closer to there than here?
Bent, theJetsBlog.com Follow on Twitter
If four games were enough to properly assess a quarterback, then Smith would have established himself as one with his performance down the stretch in 2013 and would still be a starting quarterback now. I'm not even sure that's the goal here, though. I think they can get a better idea of what Petty is but I can't imagine that whatever he does will be bad enough to make them give up on him completely or good enough to prompt them to otherwise leave the position unaddressed.
You're asking is it too late to assess Petty and it is if they want to make a final judgment before the end of the season, but I think it's clear he has a lot still to learn so it would seem illogical to impose such a rushed timetable on someone regarded as a longer term project. An alternative question would be whether it is too early to assess him. If he's still not what they would consider "ready" and he's only running a simplified version of the offense with most quick one-read looks and the occasional jump ball down the field what does that really tell us?
I doubt this weekend's game will produce much clarity anyway. The 49ers give up 170 yards per game on the ground, so surely the Jets will be mostly grounding-and-pounding this week. Still, maybe game managing his way past a weak opponent for his first win will be the kind of confidence-boosting performance he can build on to show progress in the last three weeks.
Brian Bassett, theJetsBlog.com Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | TJB Posts
Too early? He had a full rookie year to learn the program. He's had a second training camp and roughly three quarters of a season to watch. We should start having a sense of who or what he is. Is it too early for Dak Prescott or even Cody Kessler? If NFL coaches and general managers are going to draft quarterbacks who take three years to competently contribute, then they might as well take a player at any other position as far as I'm concerned ... in a topsy turvy organization like the Jets. You are theoretically drafting for your replacement.
Bent, theJetsBlog.com Follow on Twitter
Well, he wasn't just learning the program, but the basics and terminology of any NFL system. But you're correct ... in this era of shorter rookie deals and limited practice time, you have to catch on fast, otherwise you'll soon be cast aside. Guys like Chad Pennington and even Aaron Rodgers probably would have struggled if forced into a starting role on a struggling team in the middle of their second season, especially if their practice reps had been limited. That would be enough to land them on the scrapheap in the modern game.
This being the case, I agree that maybe it's a waste of a draft pick to select a project player like Petty these days unless you're capable of adjusting your offense to mask their deficiencies. Prescott has far exceeded expectations, while others have also fared better than expected, but the college systems they played in were much closer to a pro-style system than the one Petty played in at Baylor. Even then Prescott started off in a simplified version of the Dallas offense and has only recently started taking on added responsibilities like making checks at the line and calling audibles. Also, his superior supporting cast warrants mentioning.
Petty wouldn't be anything more than an afterthought if the team's plan A or plan B had worked out this season. While it might seem bad if he hasn't caught on by the end of the season, the team had other options and every indication was that they always intended to bring Petty along slowly. Get ready to do this dance again in 12 months' time because signs indicate they're handling Christian Hackenberg in the same fashion.
Brian Bassett, theJetsBlog.com Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | TJB Posts
Which to me seems insane to double, nay, triple down on that play with Hackenberg, but at this point there's only one way forward.
While the survivor bias must be strong, research is pretty extensive that first-round quarterbacks are more likely to succeed in the NFL. I have to think it's because of the needed perception to take said player in the first round combined with the front office/coaching staff's need to validate the selection. No disrespect to Petty or Hackenberg intended, but it seems like the Jets would be best suited by cleaning up their cap space, spending wisely in free agency and then taking the best available QB on the board in the first round. And that's insane for me to say, as I am staunchly in favor of a "best player available" draft philosophy.
Bent, theJetsBlog.com Follow on Twitter
Your logic is sound. In the absence of a viable stop-gap option, the need for a quarterback who will be ready sooner becomes all the more pressing and you probably need to take one really early to ensure that (Jared Goff's slow progress notwithstanding).
What about our conversation a few weeks ago about how perhaps we're about to enter an era whereby the importance of the quarterback position is becoming marginalized, though? It would be classic Jets to allocate resources to a position exactly as the trend among the most successful teams around the league is to do the opposite of that.
