Smith says right things at Jets' rookie camp
The true evidence of whether Geno Smith is cut out to be a franchise quarterback -- specifically a franchise quarterback in the New York market -- won't begin to appear for at least several months, if not years.
However, he made a good first impression during rookie minicamp this weekend, when Smith did and said all the right things during his opening days in a Jets uniform.
Upon arriving at a Florham Park, N.J., hotel on Thursday night, Smith worked with the offensive line on cadences and other huddle-type activities. He appeared to have a good command of the offense during workouts Friday and Saturday.
"I just come out and be my natural self," Smith said. "I think I've always been a natural leader, and that's something that my teammates of the past can attest to. Right now, it's about getting to know these guys and allowing them to understand me and let me lead them in a way."
Even so, asked to grade his performance Friday, Smith said he'd give himself an "F" and that he still had to work on learning everything -- including the playbook, of which he's only been handed one-third.
Off the playing field, Smith handled two press conferences at his locker with a veteran's aplomb -- especially a Friday session peppered with questions about the negative buzz surrounding him before and during the draft as well as his search for a new agent.
Of course, leading a bunch of rookies, most of them of the undrafted variety, throwing passes in a minicamp setting and fielding questions on the second weekend of May is a lot different than trying to get 45 veterans all on the same page and facing the blitzes, on and off the field, that come with quarterbacking in the NFL.
Still, Smith's minicamp performance was an important first step for a player whose maturity was questioned in the days leading up to and following his selection by the Jets.
"With us, we just go by what we see," coach Rex Ryan said Friday. "Don't let someone say, 'Oh, well, this guy didn't do this at our interviews,' or whatever.
"We were impressed with Geno, and all the other stuff is behind him. I think the kid is a pretty decent kid."
