CHICAGO — Geno Smith delivered a dud Sunday, just one week after playing one of the best games of his career.
Through three games, Smith was leading the NFL in completion percentage at 75.5 percent. On Sunday, that accuracy vanished against the Bears. Smith completed just 53.3 percent of his passes (8-for-15) for 119 yards and one touchdown in a 23-12 Jets loss.
“I think it was not my best game,” Smith said. “I think I could have done a lot better, executed a lot better in the passing game. There’s always room for improvement, as I always tell you, and I look forward to that.”
Smith threw three touchdowns against the Lions a week ago and nearly rallied the Jets to a victory. But against the Bears, Smith and the Jets offense never found anything close to a rhythm. The Jets only had the ball for 17 minutes in the game, including just 45 seconds in the fourth quarter. The 32 plays run by the Jets are a franchise low.
It started with a bizarre first quarter when the Jets ran only four plays and three of those came inside their own 10.
“It was definitely not a normal situation,” Smith said. “For us as an offense, no matter if we get it at the 25, the 35 or at the 1, you’ve got to think score. We’ve got to execute and do whatever we can to keep our defense off the field. That’s a part of playing complementary football. I think we can do a lot better job in that area.”
The Jets were 0-for-7 on third down and Smith seemed to be off the mark on his throws, something that has not been the case this season before Sunday.
“I’m with you on that,” Jets coach Aaron Glenn said of Smith missing throws. “I know he’s going to look at himself and know he should have made those plays too — that’s every player in that locker room right now. Each guy wants to be at his best every time, and sometimes, man, things can be a little off.”
Smith looked a little banged up in the second half but he said he is fine. Smith said the Jets can bounce back from this loss.
“You’ve got to get back to work and you’ve got to demand it from yourself,” Smith said. “It starts with the man in the mirror. You’ve got to demand it from yourself. Obviously, as a group, we can all play a lot better. I’m just looking forward to getting back to work with the guys. I have a lot of belief in this team and this offense, as well.”
