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Jets bench Geno Smith at halftime, but Ryan says he'll start next week

Jets bench Geno Smith at halftime, but Ryan says he'll start next week

Geno Smith was finally benched.

The New York Jets could wait no longer, sitting Smith to start the second half against the San Diego Chargers facing a 21-0 deficit.

Smith was 4-of-12 passing in the first half with an interception. The Jets totaled a mere 60 yards of offense before halftime.

Smith had been waning in effectiveness with each week, and he had thrown a pick in every game this season, for a total of six in parts of five games, also losing two fumbles on the season.

Michael Vick took Smith's place but was no more effective, completing 8-of-19 passes for 47 yards and taking two sacks. He appeared to throw a garbage-time touchdown, but he was a yard past the line of scrimmage, and the Jets couldn't convert on fourth down.

It was the NFL's first shutout of the season. The Jets' longest play from scrimmage was 13 yards. They had only three plays longer than 9 yards in the 31-0 loss.

Jets head coach Rex Ryan said after the game that Smith would return as the starter in Week 6 against the Denver Broncos.

As for Smith, he had a simple description for his effort Sunday.

Confidence in Smith — and, really, the Jets' offense in general — is at an all-time low since he joined the team.

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Eric Edholm is a writer for Shutdown Corner on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at edholm@yahoo-inc.com or follow him on Twitter!