New York Jets quarterback Geno Smith was expected to start in the team’s first preseason game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last Friday.
However, ankle soreness forced him to miss the game at the last minute, and he was ruled out less than two hours ahead of kickoff.
One week later, though, he is ready to go.
According to SNY’s Connor Hughes, Smith will start the Jets’ preseason game on Friday night against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
On the flip side, former Jets signal-caller and current Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers will not be appearing in the game, along with fellow veteran Mason Rudolph, leaving it up to Pittsburgh’s young gunslingers, Will Howard and Drew Allar.
While Smith missed last Friday’s preseason game, he was a full go throughout this week’s practices. During Monday’s practice, he wore a sleeve on his lower left leg, but he reportedly ditched it for the rest of the week, suggesting his soreness had improved.
Smith, 35, has been up and down throughout training camp. His strong performances have been highly encouraging and showcase his high-level pocket passing, while his poor showings have been riddled with turnovers and subpar accuracy.
The Jets took the wise approach last week, being cautious about the soreness rather than forcing Smith to play in the preseason opener.
Now that it appears he is ready to go, getting him 1-2 series on Friday will be helpful for assessing how he looks in a game setting with the team’s starters and within Frank Reich’s offensive system.
Friday night will be Jets fans’ first look at the team’s new-look offense for the 2026 season.
