Jets Trade Late-Round Pick To Texans For Quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- Geno Smith is going to have himself some competition this summer.
That's because the Jets continued their aggressive approach to remaking their roster on Wednesday, acquiring veteran quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick from the Houston Texans, the team announced.
The Jets reportedly gave up a 2016 late-round pick.
At best, Fitzpatrick, 32, would be a serviceable short-term placeholder in the event he beats out the embattled Smith for the starting job. At worst, he will be the backup and mentor to a quarterback who is running out of second chances.
As for the Jets' ongoing search for a franchise quarterback, it remains to be seen what they will do with the No. 6 overall pick in this spring's draft. Many NFL insiders have pegged them as a possible destination for Oregon quarterback Marcus Mariota, the reigning Heisman Trophy winner.
In his 11th season out of Harvard, Fitzpatrick has put up fairly good statistics for five different teams, throwing for nearly 20,000 yards, 123 touchdowns and 101 interceptions, while completing 60.2 percent of his passes, as both a starter and a backup.
Fitzpatrick's best run was with Buffalo from 2010-12, when current Jets offensive coordinator Chan Gailey was the Bills' head coach, as he threw 71 touchdowns in 45 games. Fitzpatrick figures to hit the ground running come OTAs and training camp considering his familiarity with Gailey's spread offense.
Fitzpatrick threw for nearly 2,500 yards, with 17 TDs and eight interceptions, in 12 games last season for Houston.
Whoever ends up being the Jets' starting quarterback will likely benefit from one of the team's best receiving corps in years. Last week's trade with Chicago put veteran Brandon Marshall alongside Eric Decker, who the Jets signed to a five-year contract last offseason. Add in talented slot receiver Jeremy Kerley and second-year tight end Jace Amaro and new head coach Todd Bowles' team should feature a lot more than the one-dimensional offenses the Jets had under previous head coach Rex Ryan.
Fitzpatrick will make $3.25 million in 2015.
