Geno Smith isn’t backing down from the matchup in front of him.
The Jets are walking into Arrowhead Stadium as heavy underdogs against the Kansas City Chiefs, and plenty of people have already written off their chances. Smith, though, is not interested in the outside noise.
“For me, again, it doesn’t matter what anyone else thinks," Smith said. "It’s about what we think and what we believe. We believe we can get it done, so again, we know it’s in a tough environment; they’re a historically great team, and they’ve done it at a high level for a long time, so we know we got our work cut out for us, but I believe in the guys in this locker room, I believe in our coaches, and I think right now we’re developing and putting together a plan to go out there and get it done.”
Smith has put together a solid statistical season in his second stint with New York. He has thrown for 1,913 yards, 12 touchdowns and three interceptions while completing 69.0% of his passes.
The Jets, however, have not been able to turn that into wins. They are 2-6, with victories over the Tennessee Titans in Game 1 and the Cleveland Browns in Game 5. Their losses have come against the Green Bay Packers, Detroit Lions, Chicago Bears, New England Patriots, Miami Dolphins and Las Vegas Raiders.
New York brought Smith in from Las Vegas during the offseason, hoping for better results after his rough year with the Raiders. Last season, he led the NFL with 17 interceptions in 15 games.
Even with Smith playing well enough to avoid job pressure, the Jets are already out of the playoff picture. That has led to talk that head coach Aaron Glenn could soon turn to rookie Cade Klubnik to see what he has in him.
Klubnik completed 21 of 34 passes for 190 yards in the preseason, with no touchdown passes and one interception. His draft stock took a hit after he and Clemson struggled during the 2025 college football season, even though he had entered that year projected as one of the top picks in the 2026 draft.
New York selected Klubnik with the 110th overall pick in the 2026 draft. He still carries plenty of confidence in his game after finishing the 2025 college football season with 2,943 passing yards and 16 touchdowns, and after throwing for 10,123 yards and 73 touchdowns in his Clemson career.
Smith’s NFL résumé remains the one the Jets are leaning on for now. He enters the Chiefs game with 24,081 passing yards, 136 touchdown passes and 92 interceptions. His best seasons came with the Seattle Seahawks in 2022 and 2023, when he made the Pro Bowl both years and earned 2022 AP Comeback Player of the Year honors.
Before this season, Smith had 22,168 passing yards, 124 passing touchdowns and 89 career interceptions in the NFL.
The bigger picture around the Jets has not changed much either. New York is 5-18 in the Glenn era and still has not won a game in the AFC East.
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Jets Still See Value In Geno Smith For A Bigger Reason
With the Jets sitting at 2-6 and the playoff picture fading fast, there is still a reason to keep Geno Smith in the building beyond whatever happens this season. The veteran quarterback has become part of the teams evaluation process, giving the staff a steadier reference point as it looks at the younger pieces around him and tries to sort out what actually works.
For now, Smiths value appears tied less to the trade market and more to what he can do for the rosters development. New York seems intent on using his presence to help gauge and grow young talent such as Allen, Adonai Mitchell, Kenyon Sadiq and Omar Cooper Jr., which makes his role a little bigger than a short-term asset at the deadline. [Read more 🡒]
Jets Offense Finally Showed Life As One New Concern Emerged
The Jets finally got a more dynamic version of their passing game in recent weeks, with Geno Smith pushing the ball downfield more often and the offense looking far more functional than it did earlier in the season. Offensive coordinator Frank Reich has helped create chances for multiple receivers to post 100-yard games, a sign that the unit is at least capable of stretching defenses and making life a little easier on a team that has needed more consistency from its offense.
Garrett Wilsons recent production has become the new concern, especially with the trade deadline approaching and the Jets trying to figure out how much help this passing game still needs. Even with the offense showing more life, Wilsons status looms large because he remains one of the key pieces in any long-term answer for Smith and the rest of the passing attack. [Read more 🡒]
Jets Pressure Just Spiked Around Garrett Wilson And The Chiefs
Garrett Wilsons week took an unwelcome turn when Aaron Glenn ruled him out for Week 9 after the concussion he sustained in Week 8. The timing is rough for a Jets offense already trying to find its footing, and it leaves New York heading into a matchup with the Chiefs without its most important receiver available to help stretch the field and steady the passing game.
Wilsons absence also lands at a moment when the conversation around him is starting to pick up again ahead of the NFL trade deadline. For a Jets team still sorting through its direction, losing a player of Wilsons caliber only adds another layer to a situation that already had plenty of moving parts. [Read more 🡒]