New York Jets: Josh McCown wins nonexistent quarterback competition
Naming Josh McCown the quarterback proved that the New York Jets quarterback competition was not an open one.
The New York Jets have finally ended the mystery of who will be their opening day starting quarterback. After three games that saw mostly the young quarterbacks play, Todd Bowles named veteran Josh McCown the starter when the Jets face the Bills in Buffalo (via Rich Cimini of ESPN).
At the announcement, Bowles declined to announce the second string and stated that it was possible that all three quarterbacks play in the final game against the Eagles. Bowles believes McCown gives them the best chance to win.
Heading into the preseason, McCown was the expected starter. However, Bowles went unconventional, giving all but one series to the youngsters, Bryce Petty and Christian Hackenberg. He felt he knew what he had in the veteran McCown and wanted to see where Petty and Hackenberg were in their development. But the veteran was expected to gain the best grasp of the offense and earn the job.
Based on the division of reps, you might think this was an open competition. But the reason Bowles gives says otherwise. During the press conference he stated that nobody improved enough to bypass McCown. Is that really the case? Let’s explore.
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We aren’t even going to talk about Hackenberg. He was given every opportunity to become the starter. All he was able to do was barely prove that he was worthy of a roster spot. He is certainly not worthy of being the starter and he really shouldn’t be the No. 2 either. Hackenberg may end up following in the same footsteps as second-round kicker Roberto Aguayo down in Tampa Bay. Every general manager has a few duds on his resume.
What about Petty? Take a look at his numbers over the three games:
- 32-of-48, 66.7 percent, three touchdowns, one interception, 106.8 passer rating.
No, he didn’t get reps with the first team on game day, though he did get them during practice. Before leaving the Giants game with a knee injury, Petty went 15-of-18 with three touchdowns. He was in control of the offense, making the proper reads and the ball was getting out of his hand. He never left himself open to get crushed due to an improper protection the way Hackenberg did against the Lions.
An open competition is supposed to mean that each person is involved and the one that performs the best is the winner. If you go purely by the numbers, Petty won this competition. He was the best performer at the quarterback position during the preseason and it wasn’t close. The fact that McCown was named the starter after playing only one series shows that the competition was never open to begin with. The outcome was predetermined. Otherwise, the numbers would have made an impact.
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If you wanted to start McCown from the beginning, that’s fine. Just don’t tell the fans that the competition is open when it really isn’t. Jets fans are smarter than that.