In the lead up to the NFL draft there were analysts who believed a third quarterback could work their way into the bottom of the first round, and Bryce Petty was largely considered the drafts third best quarterback.
Other mock drafters had the New York Jets jumping at the opportunity to grab the Baylor signal-caller in the second round, but give new general manager Mike Maccagnan credit; he showed patience, waiting until the fourth round, (where most analysts had Petty graded) and got their guy.
And according to Dan Cosentino of NJ.com, the Jets are under no delusions that Petty is pro-ready. Last year’s embattled starter Geno Smith, “will enter training camp as the Jets’ No. 1 quarterback, with veteran Ryan Fitzpatrick, who will be limited until training camp because of a leg injury, as the No. 2. Beyond that? (Head Coach Todd) Bowles said Matt Simms and Petty would ‘get some reps’ and ‘battle it out.'”
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Todd Bowles came to the Jets from an Arizona Cardinals team that showed the same resolve with their own raw, rookie fourth rounder in 2014. Even as the depth chart crumbled, head Coach Bruce Arians refused to let quarterback Logan Thomas start a game before he was ready. Thomas’ only action of the season saw him attempt 8 passes, with the lone completion being a screen pass to running Andre Ellington, who would take it for an 88-yard score.
Whether Bowles will be as steadfast with his protection of Petty as Arians was with Thomas remains to be seen, but it does set a rather promising precedent for the first year head coach. Should he see the field, Jets fans may be encouraged to know that Petty is a good fit for Chan Gailey’s offense which favors athletic quarterbacks and a power running game to set up play action passes down the field.
Petty also has a history with Jets quarterbacks coach Kevin Patullo, who was part of the staff that helped begin Petty’s development taking snaps from under center at the senior bowl back in January. Without trying to downplay the importance and difficulty of learning to take snaps under center, that really seems to be the only part of Petty’s game that is missing.
Nov 22, 2014; Waco, TX, USA; Baylor Bears quarterback Bryce Petty (14) throws a pass in the second quarter against the Oklahoma State Cowboys at McLane Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports
Measuring 6’3 and 230 pounds, size is not a concern with Petty, nor is arm strength, and he’s been praised by quarterback guru and ESPN analyst, Jon Gruden, as having the best arm talent in this year’s draft class. Gruden also says Petty has been “stereotyped in the Baylor offense, but he’s different.”NFL draft analyst Mike Mayock (via College Football 24/7 writer Mike Huguein of NFL.com) called him the draft’s most natural thrower of the football back in March.
He grades out well from an intelligence standpoint and while he ran some option looks at Baylor; he’s more of an athletic passer with enough speed to get out of trouble, than a dual-threat quarterback.
Petty ran a one-read offense designed to get the ball out quickly to a predetermined target, and Petty has been rightly criticized for an struggles to find second and third receivers. But there is an upside, to Petty running a fast paced offense; it helped him develop a good quick release that more times than not results in dead-on accurate passes.
Despite the one-read nature of Baylor’s offense, Petty often didn’t have the wide open targets that fellow rookie Marcus Mariota seemed to at Oregon. Throwing to a well covered receiver will be nothing new for Petty, who continually shows confidence in his arm, nearly to the point of fault. While many of his numbers are inflated by the spread offense, his 61 touchdowns to just 10 interceptions is no accident, and should not be considered a side effect of the system.
While he has a bad tendency to force throws off his back foot when facing pressure and his accuracy suffers. When Petty sets his feet and steps into his throw, he’s deadly; He puts the ball right on the receiver in slant and screen routes, and delicately drops it over his teammates shoulder on deeper routes. However, he does show a tendency to lead receivers too far in effort to keep the ball out of opposing cornerbacks hands.
In Petty the Jets got an extremely promising quarterback prospect that nearly most analysts agree will need time to learn an NFL offense. This should allow New York to be patient with Geno Smith this season while keeping veteran Ryan Fitzpatrick entrenched as the back-up, and even fan favorite Matt Simms able to step in as Petty continues to get comfortable under center.
As far as the rest of the supporting cast, the Jets pass catching options are better than they’ve been in years. If they wind up on the field together this preseason, watch for Petty to develop quick chemistry with Jets second-round pick Devin Smith; whose ability to gain separation downfield will pair nicely with Petty’s big arm and flair for the big play.
Ideally, Petty and the Jets will embrace the idea of a pseudo redshirt season in 2015, regardless of how the rest of the team’s quarterbacks play and have Petty coached up and ready to compete with Geno Smith for the starters spot in 2016 (the last year of Geno’s rookie contract).
Then again don’t be surprised be surprised if things go the Blake Bortles route, with the team preaching patience while reports claim Petty’s ahead of expectations; an impressive preseason fueling the fans fire and ultimately leading to a quarterback change if Geno struggles early and Fitzpatrick is injured.
In any case, Petty seems ready for whatever comes next. He’s spoken honestly about facing a learning curve and seems up to the challenge and eager to prove his doubters wrong. With a veteran mentor, bevy of offensive weapons and coaching staff well suited to his skill set it’s difficult to imagine a better situation for Bryce Petty than the one he finds himself in with the New York Jets.
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