Jets should look elsewhere for their 2017 starting quarterback

The New York Jets have a serious but familiar problem: They don’t have a quarterback. This has been a common refrain for the franchise since Joe Namath’s retirement, and aside from an exciting run by Chad Pennington (when healthy) and brief stretches of competence by Mark Sanchez, the Jets have spent decades on a quixotic quest for a franchise QB.

Things are no different as the calendar turns from 2016 to 2017. Ryan Fitzpatrick’s meltdown means that the team once again heads into the offseason in search of a QB. The options on the current roster are uninspiring, but could the Jets find help from free agency or the draft? Let’s take a look at the big picture here.

Fitzpatrick and Geno Smith are both headed to free agency, and it’s unlikely they stick around. Fitzpatrick is on the downside of his career at age 34, while Smith is recovering from a torn ACL and might not be ready for training camp.

Currently under center is Bryce Petty, tasked with putting something passable on tape while playing out a lost season. Petty had a decorated college career at Baylor, winning Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year in 2013. However, he dropped to the fourth round of the 2015 NFL draft amid concerns about learning an NFL playbook after years of playing in Art Briles’ simplistic spread offense. Petty spent his entire rookie year on the bench before being thrown into action this year. He hasn’t done much to impress, and at best, he looks like a long-term backup rather than a regular starter.

The Jets spent their 2016 second-round selection on Christian Hackenberg, which frankly could be a wasted pick. Despite good physical tools, Hackenberg was thoroughly unimpressive at Penn State, completing just 56.1 percent of his passes in three years. He’s been glued to the bench after a disastrous preseason performance, and there’s no indication that Hackenberg is close to being prepared for the NFL. It’s doubtful he’ll be ready in 2017.

The Jets made a curious decision to keep four QBs on the 53-man roster, and none of them look to be a viable Week 1 starter next year. That means they’ll probably have to search for outside options.

The two biggest names up for availability in the offseason are players who are still under contract, though that could quickly change given the circumstances.

Tony Romo has been phased out of the Dallas offense in favor of Dak Prescott. He accepted the demotion with grace and class, and even though he’s still signed through 2019, the Cowboys could net a pretty penny by offering him up for trade. It’d be tempting for the Jets to make a splashy acquisition for a proven veteran. But should they be willing to pay a steep price for a 36-year-old with chronic back problems?

The other big name is Jay Cutler, who’s fallen out of favor with the Chicago Bears. The team can save $14 million by cutting him, per Over The Cap, but how much does Cutler have left in the tank? He’s even more volatile than Romo, has the same injury problems, and wouldn’t come cheap in free agency. After getting burned so hard by Fitzpatrick, would Jets fans really embrace another veteran retread who would be a short-term Band-Aid at best?

There’s another free-agent option who’s also younger and less proven: Mike Glennon. The 27-year-old showed flashes of decent play with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who have since rendered him expendable by drafting Jameis Winston. He’s surely eager to earn another starting job and could leverage his free agency into a pretty good payday. Maybe the Jets throw their name in the hat for Glennon’s services? It’s not an exciting choice but certainly carries a more stable floor than the other names available.

Of course, free agency or a trade aren’t the only ways for the Jets to find a QB.

Entering Week 15, the Jets hold the sixth overall spot in the 2017 NFL draft. That’s a prime position to land a QB of the future. The problem is that this upcoming QB class is not terribly inspiring.

On Wednesday, the New York Daily News dropped a report that the Jets are “hot” for North Carolina prospect Mitch Trubisky, who would be one of the top QBs in the draft if he declares early. (He’s not expected to make his decision until after the Sun Bowl on Dec. 30.) Trubisky is an interesting prospect, but he has just one year of starting experience.

Other QBs like Deshaun Watson and DeShone Kizer face questions about being ready for the NFL, which should make teams wonder if they’re worth spending a top-10 pick on. The Buffalo Bills provided a study in reaching on QBs when they drafted EJ Manuel No. 16 overall in 2013, a historically weak year for QBs when nobody else went in the first round. Manuel wasn’t a consensus first-round prospect and clearly wasn’t ready for the big expectations. He predictably faceplanted, currently taking a backseat to Tyrod Taylor.

If you want a bigger precedent for teams panicking and taking a QB too early, look no further than 2011. With the Tennessee Titans, Jacksonville Jaguars, and Minnesota Vikings all facing QB crises, they took the plunge on uncertain products almost all in a row. Jake Locker went to Tennessee at No. 8, Blaine Gabbert to Jacksonville at No. 10, and Christian Ponder to Minnesota at No. 12. Five years later, Locker is already out of the league, while Gabbert and Ponder failed with their original teams and are now doomed to career backup status.

(Fun trivia note: The two players who got drafted in between Locker, Gabbert, and Ponder? Tyron Smith and J.J. Watt.)

I bring this all up to make an important point: If the right QB isn’t there in the first round, don’t take him. It doesn’t benefit the team or the fans to overdraft a flawed prospect, just to say you have one, and then expect him to save the franchise. Recent history proves that ends badly for everyone involved.

The Jets don’t have any easy answers at QB. The current roster doesn’t have an obvious 2017 starter, the free-agent/trade market is littered with question marks, and the upcoming draft class isn’t inspiring.

This is a huge problem for head coach Todd Bowles, whose job could be on the line after just two years. It’s a huge problem for GM Mike Maccagnan, who built an aging roster to make a playoff push and is nowhere close to the playoffs. And it’s a huge problem for Jets fans, who just want to see a dang good QB for once.

Barring an unexpected turnaround for Petty or a true breakthrough for Hackenberg’s development, the Jets don’t have a 2017 starter right now. If Bowles and Maccagnan keep their jobs, their biggest challenge of the offseason will be finding that starter.