New York Jets: Benching Geno Smith Was Right Move

On paper, the New York Jets had a clear advantage as they went into week 11 of the 2013 NFL season when they had a matchup with the Buffalo Bills. The Bills, a team plagued by injuries, were coming into this game short-handed and with what you would have guessed to be a heavy reliance on their running game. That played right into the Jets’ hands.

For the 2013 season, the Jets have the best run defense in the entire league. New York has allowed just over 73 yards per game on the ground this season, which should have spelled doom for this Bills team. When they played the game on Sunday afternoon, though, the look of the game on paper didn’t factor in the stinker that rookie quarterback Geno Smith was going to put up.

Smith dropped back to pass 27 times in the game, which ended in just eight completions for only 103 yards, four sacks and three interceptions. The Jets defense wasn’t allowed to be effective because they were essentially on the field to often to ever catch their breath. That allowed Bills’ rookie E.J. Manuel to sit back and have a nice day throwing, eliminating the necessity to truly break down New York’s running game.

Late in the game, the Jets decided to bench Smith and, frankly, they were right in doing so. Sure, the Jets were pretty much out of the game at that point and you run a slight risk of hurting Geno’s confidence, but him coming out and having another bad turnover isn’t going to help his confidence either. By bringing in Matt Simms, the Jets were allowed to somewhat save face and to let Smith regroup until the next that he takes the field. It may look bad on the surface, but when you dig down and think about it, this is actually a good move by the Jets and a good move for the talented rookie.

Cody Williams is a Senior Writer with Rant Sports. Follow Cody on Twitter @TheSizzle20, add him on Google and like his Facebook page.