2) A new and improved passing game
It was a disappointing 2025 campaign for Smith in his lone season with the Raiders, but let’s not overlook that he’s a two-time Pro Bowler with more 4,000-yard seasons (two) in his 13-year career than the Jets have in their 60-plus seasons of existence (one — Joe Namath, 1967).
As a bounce-back specialist who has overcome several setbacks during his career, Smith is a polished passer who can pick defenses apart with surgical precision. He has finished with a completion percentage of 64 percent or better in each of the past four seasons, including a league-best 69.8 percent in 2022. Considering Smith has shown he can efficiently operate an offense featuring playmakers on the perimeter, the Jets’ upgraded lineup should help him get back to playing high-level football from the pocket.
Garrett Wilson is a made man as an upper-echelon WR1, but the additions of Sadiq and Cooper should really open up the field for the 2022 Offensive Rookie of the Year. With Adonai Mitchell and Mason Taylor slotted into key roles at WR and Y tight end, respectively, the Jets have 11 and 12 personnel packages that can create mismatch problems for opponents. Additionally, the versatility of Breece Hall — who was rewarded on Friday with a long-term deal — out of the backfield should make it easy for Smith to identify and target favorable matchups in pivotal moments.
New offensive coordinator Frank Reich is the perfect play-caller to make it work, given his experience transforming a similarly constructed Eagles offense into a Super Bowl winner nearly a decade ago. The former NFL quarterback helped Carson Wentz and Nick Foles guide an offensive juggernaut, even though the team didn’t have a pass catcher reach 825 yards that season. Although the Jets have more talent and potential on the perimeter, Smith and Reich’s ability to do more with less bodes well for an offense that needed more firepower and schematic diversity.
If the offensive line continues to progress with former first-round picks Olu Fashanu and Armand Membou excelling as bookend blockers, the Jets could really be cooking with gas. Of course, it will also take the interior trio of Dylan Parham, Josh Myers and Joe Tippmann to truly create a fortress in front of Smith. If the group jells, the Jets’ aerial attack will perfectly complement a downhill rushing game featuring Hall and Braelon Allen.