The prodigal son has returned to Gotham.
Nine years after leaving New York and a decade removed from his last season with the Jets, Geno Smith has returned via trade from the Las Vegas Raiders.
Once viewed as a problem child, Smith is aiming to be the answer for a Jets franchise that drafted him in the 2013 second round.
For the quarterback who once memorably said, "," another comeback tale potentially awaits. Admittedly needing to come up with another phrase, Smith is enthralled by the prospect of getting another shot to make it in New York.
"Here I am at another pivotal point in my career, where I guess you could say they're writing me off again," Smith told Josina Anderson on "," Tuesday, not long after his trade to New York was reported. "I don't know if I can use that again. I got to come up with something new, but that's where we are. I don't really care too much about the outside noise, but I do understand that narratives are being created. Not everyone's gonna be a fan of this move. There's gonna be naysayers as there always is, but who cares about them. I'm looking forward to building with the people who believe, and those people are the ones I want to win for."
A 2013 second-round pick out of West Virginia, Smith was a starter over his first two seasons with the Jets, throwing 34 interceptions and earning 11 wins in 29 starts. He's likely most remembered for an infamous incident in which he was decked by teammate Ikemefuna Enemkpali during a locker room spat in the summer of 2015. Smith's jaw was broken and Enemkpali's time on the team ended. Giving way to Ryan Fitzpatrick, Smith played in just one game the ensuing season. In his final Jets game in 2016, he threw a touchdown and helped New York to a 24-16 win over the Baltimore Ravens.
"It's super like this full-circle moment for me honestly," Smith said. "I can remember my last touchdown was to Quincy Enunwa right there in MetLife Stadium, playing the Ravens that day I tore my ACL. That began my journey and it all led me back here where it all started. I thank God for the opportunity. I thank the Jets for the opportunity."
As Smith chooses to look in the rearview fondly, he's doing the same when it comes to the road ahead.
"Coach Glenn and I have been on the phone and he's got a real plan," he said. "I believe in what he and [general manager Darren Mougey] and everyone over there is doing. They've got a real plan and they're ready to kind of turn things around. Just to be a part of that is gonna be special. It's kind of like a movie. It's kind of like a movie script."
In his first act with the Jets, Smith emerged as a bit player, spending a season with the New York Giants in 2017 before a 2018 campaign with the Los Angeles Chargers and two uneventful seasons with the Seattle Seahawks from 2019-2020 as Russell Wilson's understudy. Then came 2021, when Smith was thrust into action for an injured Wilson. He played admirably and when Wilson was shipped to the Denver Broncos in the offseason, Smith won the QB1 battle, his budding relationship with Pete Carroll blossoming.
Smith went to back-to-back Pro Bowls from 2022-2023, earning AP NFL Comeback Player of the Year in his first season as a Seahawks starter.
It was a comeback of the ages, but more travails have followed – it wouldn't be a captivating drama without them.
Smith was traded to the Las Vegas Raiders last offseason to rejoin Carroll.
Both went bust: Carroll getting fired after a 3-14 season and Smith set to be released before a trade was worked out.
"Wasn't my best year last year, and a lot of those things I take onus of," said Smith, who led the NFL with 17 interceptions in 2025 while throwing for 201.7 yards per game and 19 touchdowns. "I own it myself. I knew that there would be a change being made. Potentially, you know, could have probably stayed with the Raiders in a mentor role, but where I'm at in my career, I really believe I'm one of the better quarterbacks in the league, and I've got to go out there and prove it. I wanted a team that was gonna believe in me and was gonna have my back, and how ironic that it turned out to be the Jets. When I got a chance to speak with coach Glenn, he laid out the plan for me. From that point on, I knew this was somewhere I could consider. "
Smith is back where it all began, looking to get into a and aiming for another career resurrection, this one perhaps fitting for a movie or a Broadway play.
"I've been staying out of the way and I've been putting my head down and getting to work," he said. "I believe this next stretch of my career is gonna be the best."
