The New York Jets have already done plenty this offseason to shake up the offense, but the biggest danger in 2026 may come from the one position they hoped would steady everything.
Geno Smith sits at the center of it. If he doesn’t deliver, the Jets could spend the entire season stuck in neutral - not just losing games, but failing to learn what they actually have on offense.
That’s the nightmare Bleacher Report’s Kristopher Knox pointed to when he laid out the team’s worst-case scenario: "Worst-Case Scenario: Smith, Klubnik and Co. Leave Jets Without Accurate Gauge of Their Offensive Cast," Knox writes.
That outcome is very much on the table. Smith had a rough 2025 with the Las Vegas Raiders, and it wouldn’t be a shock if Cade Klubnik also falls short in 2026. If neither quarterback plays well, the Jets would be left without a reliable way to evaluate the rest of the offense.
That matters because there are still real questions beyond Garrett Wilson and Breece Hall, who are already known commodities. The Jets need a better read on Adonai Mitchell and Mason Taylor, and they also need a first look at Omar Cooper Jr. and Kenyon Sadiq. A shaky quarterback situation could keep all of that from coming into focus.
The concern isn’t just that the offense would look bad. It’s that the Jets could finish the year without meaningful answers about their young pieces or their offensive line.
Last season, the team benched Justin Fields in part because he wasn’t throwing enough to properly judge how the offense was functioning. A similar problem could easily surface again if Smith’s 2025 form turns out to be the real version of him rather than the one he showed earlier in his Seattle Seahawks days.
There is at least one possible upside if that scenario plays out: the Jets would likely end up with a top draft pick. That would give them a chance to find their quarterback of the future without having to give up their other 2027 firsts.
In Other News...
Jets Receiver Battle Is About To Get Brutal At Camp
The Jets are heading into training camp with a crowded receiver room and a clear top of the depth chart, with Garrett Wilson and Adonai Mitchell expected to anchor the group. After those two, though, the competition gets crowded in a hurry. New York has 12 wideouts on the offseason roster, and the mix includes rookies, undrafted players and a pair of names already drawing attention as the most realistic candidates to stick behind the starters.
Arian Smith and Isaiah Williams look like the ones to watch as the roster battle tightens, especially with Williams bringing special teams value and Smith still trying to turn his draft pedigree into a bigger role. The Jets will have to sort out who can help on offense, who can contribute in the kicking game and who is simply getting a camp look, which makes the final receiver spots one of the more intriguing jobs on the roster. It also means some familiar names are likely to be pushed toward the bubble quickly once practices get rolling. [Read more 🡒]
Jets Fans Will Instantly Recognize The Risk In Cade Klubnik Buzz
For Jets fans, the Cade Klubnik buzz comes with a familiar kind of warning label. New York has spent years trying to solve quarterback development, and now the conversation is shifting toward the Clemson passer as a developmental bet, the sort of talent evaluators can talk themselves into because the arm, movement and intelligence all look the part.
One scout sees enough there to believe Klubnik can be a decent NFL player, but the fit matters almost as much as the player. The concerns are the ones that tend to travel with young quarterbacks into the league: how he handles pressure, how often his decisions get loose when the pocket tightens, and whether the environment around him can keep those issues from becoming the story. For the Jets, that is exactly the sort of risk they know too well. [Read more 🡒]
Jets Fans May Not Like Where This Young Pass Rusher Stands
Tyler Baron entered the Jets offseason as one of the younger pass rushers trying to carve out a role, with the former fifth-round pick still early in his career and still carrying the promise that comes with it. He flashed enough last season to get on the field in six games and finish with nine tackles before a knee injury cut his year short, leaving the team with an incomplete evaluation as camp gets underway.
Baron now finds himself in a crowded fight for survival, the kind that can shift quickly over the next few weeks of practices and preseason snaps. He still has a chance to make his case, whether that means forcing his way onto the opening roster or making himself appealing enough that another team wants a look if the Jets move on. [Read more 🡒]