The Athletic’s Zach Rosenblatt believes Geno Smith and Jacoby Brissett are the frontrunners to be the Jets starting quarterback in 2026.

06 March 2026

Rosenblatt concludes that Smith’s availability and his lack of cost given his ability to play on an offset contract that should see him making the minimum will be pluses for the Jets. Smith, who was finally given walking papers earlier today, still has fans around the league and could be a reasonable one-year stopgap for the Jets. Brissett is seen as less likely by Rosenblatt because he has heard conflicting things about what Brissett might cost — we just blurbed about the Cardinals being unlikely to deal him, while Rosenblatt has heard they might move on for a high-end Day 3 pick. The idea of a Geno Smith-Jets reunion in 2026. What a wonderful world we live in.