Ryan Fitzpatrick calls out Jets GM, Todd Bowles for doubting him
The New York Jets ended their four-game losing skid on Sunday against the Ravens, beating Baltimore 24-16 at home. They did so with two quarterbacks taking snaps from center due to Geno Smith’s injury.
Ryan Fitzpatrick, of course, was benched this week in favor of Smith after he and the Jets offense sputtered significantly in recent weeks. His time on the sidelines only lasted a little more than a quarter as Smith suffered a knee injury before halftime.
Fitzpatrick played fairly well in Smith’s place, completing 9 of 14 passes for 120 yards and a touchdown. More importantly, he led the Jets to a much-needed win after losing four straight.
After the game, he was heated and upset with the team’s decision to bench him. He went as far as to say he should start every week from here on out.
In addition to declaring he should regain his starter status, Fitzpatrick also went on to call out ownership, general manager Mike Maccagnan and the coaching staff for not believing in him enough.
"When the owner stops believing in you and the GM stops believing in you and coaches stop believing in you, sometimes all you have is yourself," Fitzpatrick said, via Manish Mehta.
With the way Fitzpatrick played in the first six games, it’s easy to see why Todd Bowles went in a different direction. He was leading the league in turnovers and had lost four straight starts. What else was Bowles supposed to do? Fitzpatrick played himself out of the job, and with his fiery comments after the win, it might not help his case.
There’s a thin line between being confident and calling out the team as a whole for doubting him. The severity of Smith’s knee injury isn’t yet known, but he doesn’t believe it’s serious.
If Smith is healthy for the Jets’ next game, it will be interesting to see who gets the start. Fitzpatrick obviously played better, but it was also against the Ravens’ depleted secondary.
.@GenoSmith7: "I don't think [the knee] will be anything too significant, but we'll see." pic.twitter.com/r6XILseuqr
— New York Jets (@nyjets) October 23, 2016
