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CLEVELAND — After playing things close to the vest, Jets coach Todd Bowles on Sunday ultimately opted for the unsurprising move of having second-year pro Bryce Petty be his backup quarterback, instead of rookie Christian Hackenberg.
Petty did not play in Sunday’s win at the Browns. He almost did, when Ryan Fitzpatrick was briefly evaluated for a concussion. But Fitzpatrick wound up missing no snaps, after being cleared.
After the game, Bowles explained why he made Petty his backup, now that Geno Smith is out for the season with a torn ACL and Fitzpatrick is starting again.
“Bryce has seen more plays than Hack has seen,” Bowles said. “Bryce has been here a year, and he has a little more experience, so we went that way.”
But Bowles also said this, when asked if the decision between Petty and Hackenberg was a close one: “I thought Bryce was ahead of him, but Hack is not too far behind.”
An interesting quote.
The Jets drafted Petty in Round 4 in 2015 and Hackenberg in Round 2 this year. They are clearly invested in developing Hackenberg as their potential future starting quarterback, but he remains raw, as was evident in the preseason. The Jets hadn’t seen enough of Petty in 2015, while he only practiced and didn’t play, to be sold on him as their definitive future starter. So they drafted Hackenberg.
Where does this all leave Petty?
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Neither he nor Hackenberg has ever played in an NFL regular season game. Hackenberg was able to develop during the nearly two-month period that Petty recently missed due to a preseason shoulder injury. So it seems like he is catching up to Petty, who is something of a project player, too. Because neither has played in an actual game, both remain largely unproven, one way or the other.
Fitzpatrick and Smith almost certainly won’t be back with the Jets next season, as both are scheduled to become free agents. So the Jets will have some evaluating to do, with their two young quarterbacks, as they determine a pecking order for 2017 — which surely also will include the acquisition of a veteran quarterback.
The Jets are 3-5, after two straight wins. Once they are mathematically eliminated from playoff contention, whenever that happens, it is entirely possible they will play Petty and/or Hackenberg, to get an evaluation for the future.
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