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Michael Vick Experiment Should Be Over for New York Jets

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By @GregSulik

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All the talking heads and frustrated fans finally got what they wanted in the New York Jets 31-0 blowout loss to the San Diego Chargers yesterday, as Geno Smith was benched in favor of Michael Vick. And though it shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone who’s actually seen Vick play over the last few seasons, he was just as awful as Smith was. Now that we’ve gotten that out of the way, the Jets should turn things back over to Smith and leave him as the starter for the remainder of the season.

Vick completed just 8/19 passes for 47 yards while taking two sacks and rushing twice for 14 yards. Not exactly inspiring numbers, and not much better than Smith, who completed a pathetic 4/12 passes for 27 yards and one interception. Though he hasn’t been for some time, this performance made it abundantly clear that Vick is no longer a quality starting NFL quarterback, let alone the electrifying talent he was as recently as 2010. Vick was extremely erratic with his throws, looked uncomfortable in the pocket, and simply didn’t offer any spark to the Jets’ offense.

Without Eric Decker, the Jets’ receiving corps was once again reduced to Jeremy Kerley and collection of reserves, and it put both quarterbacks in a very difficult spot. The Jets also have one of the worst pass protecting sets of guards in the NFL with Willie Colon and Brian Winters, and the consistent pressure right in the quarterback’s face makes it impossible to find a rhythm.

However, the Jets are stuck working with what they have at this point, so it is time to accept a few realities. The first is that neither Smith nor Vick is a long term option. The second is that the Jets’ playoff chances are effectively dead already, barring some miracle that the team’s performance makes extremely unlikely. The third is that everything the Jets do from here on out should be about planning for the future.

With all that in mind, there is no other option than to start Smith, which the Jets have already said they are going to do. Vick is simply not an upgrade over Smith at this point in time, so there is no reason to play a 34 year old quarterback on a one year contract. As bad as Smith has been the last couple weeks, there is still a chance, however remote, that he will develop into a decent quarterback. Vick is firmly on the decline of his career, and there is no reason for the Jets to ride that out. Give Smith a shot for rest of the season and see what happens.

I doubt that Smith will turn things around enough to convince the Jets he’s a long term option. However, he is the only quarterback on the Jets’ roster who has a chance of proving that, and the only logical thing to do is play him and hope something clicks. No matter whether it does or doesn’t for Smith, yesterday proved that Vick isn’t a good option, so the Jets are left with no choice but to stick with Smith and hope for the best.

Greg Sulik is a New York Jets writer for Rant Sports. Follow him on Twitter@GregSulik or add him to your network on Google

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