Jets players haven't exactly rallied around Geno Smith in the aftermath of his jaw-breaking altercation with IK Enemkpali, but it appears as if one of the newest -- and most controversial members of the squad -- has his back.
Geno Smith finally defended by a Jets teammate
But it’s Brandon Marshall, so don’t get too excited.
Wide receiver Brandon Marshall expressed sympathy for Smith Monday, and said the embattled quarterback isn’t to blame for the incident, via Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News.
“I’m very disappointed. I feel bad for the kid, because he was doing really good. But we have to move forward if we want to win. Geno knows that,” Marshall said.
“I was sitting right there and I would say this without going into too many details because we’ve already moved past it: Geno Smith did nothing wrong. He did nothing wrong,” Marshall added. “And that’s all I’m going to say about that because we have to move forward and I don’t want to be a distraction to our team, but Geno Smith did everything the right way.”
Marshall's support comes one day after Jets head coach Todd Bowles admonished Smith for playing catch too soon after the surgery.
“He shouldn’t be doing it right now,” Bowles said. “He just had surgery. You don’t want it getting infected.”
Smith is expected to be out 6-10 weeks, and the certain members of the Jets don't seem all that upset about it. Star cornerback Darrelle Revis said last week he holds both Enemkpali and Smith responsible for the fight, and left guard Willie Colon said it was a "smooth groove" when Ryan Fitzpatrick was under center in New York's 23-3 loss to the Lions Thursday.
With the exception of Marshall, Smith seems to be facing indifference inside his own locker room, and criticism outside of it. ESPN analyst Cris Carter was quick to blame Smith for the fight last week, and NFL Network commentator Willie McGinest said he would have given Enemkpali, who’s now with the Bills, a contract extension.
Meanwhile, in Jets Land, Bowles made his team run gassers over the weekend following two skirmishes in practice.
In Smith’s absence, it appears as if the J-E-T-S haven’t skipped a beat.
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