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Fitzpatrick the man as Jets quarterback

The Sports Xchange

September 22, 2015 at 6:57 pm.

The Jets are 2-0 under Fitzpatrick, who has done what Smith could rarely do in his first two seasons: Play efficient football while serving as the caretaker of a run-first offense. Ed Mulholland-USA TODAY Sports

The Jets are 2-0 under Fitzpatrick, who has done what Smith could rarely do in his first two seasons: Play efficient football while serving as the caretaker of a run-first offense. Ed Mulholland-USA TODAY Sports

FLORHAM PARK, N.J. — There will be no quarterback controversy for the New York Jets.

Head coach Todd Bowles said Tuesday, a day after the visiting Jets upset the Indianapolis Colts, 20-7, that quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick will remain the starter even when Geno Smith returns from his broken jaw.

“Ryan will get all the first-team reps,” Bowles said, in his typical understated fashion, when asked Tuesday about the depth chart once Smith is cleared for practice.

The Jets are 2-0 under Fitzpatrick, who has done what Smith could rarely do in his first two seasons: Play efficient football while serving as the caretaker of a run-first offense.

Fitzpatrick was 22-of-34 for 244 yards, two touchdowns and one interception on Monday night. He has four touchdown passes, two interceptions and is completing 63.8 percent of his passes thus far. Smith has thrown more interceptions (34) than touchdowns (25) while completing just 57.5 percent of his attempts.

“Ryan is our QB right now,” Bowles said. “We’re going good. We have good chemistry right now. Geno understands that.”

Smith entered training camp as the unquestioned starter, but his infamous locker-room fight with former linebacker IK Enemkpali on Aug. 11 opened the door for Fitzpatrick to take over. While the Jets cut Enemkpali hours after he punched Smith, Bowles made it clear he was also disgusted with Smith for allowing the disagreement to build to the point of violence.

The dispute reportedly stemmed from Smith failing to pay back Enemkpali the $600 Enemkpali paid for Smith’s travel expenses to a charity function organized by Enemkpali. Smith had to cancel his trip due to the death of a close friend.

–For the second straight week, the Jets got better news than they expected regarding a knee injury.

Wide receiver Eric Decker, who was hurt late in Monday night’s 20-7 win over the Jets, underwent an MRI Tuesday that revealed only a PCL injury. Head coach Todd Bowles said Decker is day-to-day.

While Decker avoided a serious injury, the short week leading up to Sunday’s game against the Philadelphia Eagles would seem to work against a quick return for Decker, as would his recent history of leg issues. He missed one game last season, and was limited in several others, by a hamstring ailment.

Cornerback Antonio Cromartie, who suffered a non-contact left knee injury in the opener against the Cleveland Browns but was diagnosed with a hyperextension, ended up playing 61 of 64 defensive snaps on Monday night.

REPORT CARD VS. COLTS

–PASSING OFFENSE: A-minus — Geno who? QB Ryan Fitzpatrick (22-of-34, 244 yards, two touchdowns, one interception) continued to cement his grip on the starting job with an impressive performance. Fifteen of Fitzpatrick’s completions and both his touchdowns went to WR Eric Decker (eight catches for 97 yards and one touchdown) and WR Brandon Marshall (seven catches for 101 yards and one touchdown), the latter of whom was the recipient of four penalties from the overmatched Colts. Decker did all his work in the first half before exiting with a knee injury. It wasn’t an entirely perfect day — Fitzpatrick threw an interception into the end zone and WR Chris Owusu committed a pair of costly drops – and there may not be an easier task this season than picking apart the Colts’ decimated secondary. But this is Fitzpatrick’s team for the foreseeable future, at least.

–RUSHING OFFENSE: B-minus — With Fitzpatrick having a field day and RB Chris Ivory (groin) a bit limited, the Jets (27 rushes for 101 yards) didn’t have to do much on the ground. Ivory (14 carries for 57 yards) and RB Bilal Powell (12 carries for 38 yards) mostly ran into the line: Outside of their long gainers — a 19-yarder for Ivory and a 23-yarder for Powell — they averaged 2.21 yards per carry. But that was more than enough Monday.

–PASS DEFENSE: A-minus — That’s more like it. The Jets harassed Colts QB Andrew Luck, who wasn’t sacked but was constantly under siege during his fifth career three-interception game but just his second since 2013. Luck was pressured on 39 percent of his dropbacks (16 of 41), the second-highest figure of his career. Of the 250 yards he collected, 122 were generated in the fourth quarter. Backup CB Buster Skrine forced the first interception by leveling Luck as he threw. That pick was recorded by S Calvin Pryor, who was later joined by S Marcus Gilchrist and CB Darrelle Revis in the Pick Luck Club. Revis also added two fumble recoveries and completely negated WR T.Y. Hilton. Yeah, he was worth the money. Second-year WR Donte Moncrief (seven catches for 122 yards and one touchdown) had a pretty good day, but this was a statement game for a unit that struggled in the season opener against the Browns.

–RUSH DEFENSE: A-minus — The Colts (24 rushes for 93 yards) got little going with a ground game led by aging RB Frank Gore (15 rushes for 57 yards), whose total was padded by a long gain of 18 yards. The Jets made the stops of the game at the end of a long drive in the third quarter, when, with the Colts down 10-0, Gore was stuffed on first and second down before fumbling on third. Revis recovered it and the Jets’ lead was never really threatened the rest of the way.

–SPECIAL TEAMS: C — Poor K Nick Folk and P Ryan Quigley, who are going to bear the brunt of complaints in the film room. Folk nailed two field goals but missed a 48-yard attempt at the end of the first half. All five of Quigley’s punts traveled 40 yards or fewer. WR Jeremy Kerley, limited to one snap again on offense, called for a fair catch on his two punt returns, including one inside the Jets’ 10-yard line. Both kickoffs by the Colts sailed into the end zone for a touchback.

COACHING: A-minus — Todd Bowles didn’t say much of anything but got the Jets fully prepared for an early-season statement game in prime time. Under Rex Ryan, the Jets were 5-11 on Monday or Thursday nights. Defensive coordinator Kacy Rodgers oversaw a game plan that forced five turnovers and kept the Colts out of sorts all night. Offensive coordinator Chan Gailey didn’t get attached to the run game when it became obvious the Colts couldn’t stop the Jets through the air, nor did he try to take the air out of the football in the fourth quarter, when the Jets threw the ball four times in a seven-play touchdown drive that extended the lead to 17-7. One hiccup: The Jets committed eight penalties, so there might be some gassers run at practice this week.

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