Bryce Petty squanders another opportunity with the Jets

Quarterback Bryce Petty squandered yet another opportunity to prove his worth to the New York Jets with another uninspired straight loss.

The New York Jets fell to the Los Angeles Chargers 14-7 on Sunday, and the offense once again looked out of sync with Bryce Petty under center. The third-year pro struggled mightily all afternoon missing wide open receivers on multiple occasions, and taking far too many costly sacks.

The only real highlights came from a few big Bilal Powell runs including a 57-yard touchdown sprint that accounted for Gang Green’s only score of the day. It felt like every time the Jets were starting to gain some momentum on offense Petty simply couldn’t finish it off, and his chance to prove he’s part of the future seem to be running out.

Its hard to turn your back and criticize a guy that always has a smile on his face and outworks everybody else in the building. But production and results are what matter the most in the NFL and Petty so far simply hasn’t been up to the task. He finished the game with a ghastly 49.6 passer rating for the second consecutive week and has now thrown an interception in all six of his NFL starts dating back to last season. His 50.8 percent completion percentage is also not exactly anything to hang your hat on.

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Courtesy of the Media Relations Department of the Jets, Petty said the following after Sunday’s game:

“You can’t get discouraged, I promise you the talent is there but this is a process and you learn every time out.”

Unfortunately for Petty, the Jets patience for him may be running out, and the odds are high that they move on from the former fourth-round pick at the end of the season. If Petty was a higher draft pick the Jets may be willing to keep rolling the dice with him into next season and hope that he finally lives up to his potential. But with second-round pick Christian Hackenberg still waiting in the wings and a top 10 draft pick in a year that features a plethora of top-tier QB talent, Petty will likely have to take his talents elsewhere.

Petty has everything from a character standpoint that you would want in a franchise quarterback. He’s a tough hard-working kid with a positive attitude that has made him beloved by many of his teammates. He has plenty of physical intangibles including a rocket of an arm and an ability to scramble and create with his feet once the pocket collapses. But there come a time when your quarterback must put everything together and show some progress on the field, and saying that Petty has done any of that yet would be a definite lie. His strong arm has at times been his own undoing, with passes sailing too far over the head of his intended target.

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Petty said he knows where he wants to go with the ball but that his feet are moving quicker than his mind which he believes is leading to some of the abysmal throws that were on display Sunday. He’ll likely get one more shot before the year is over next week in Foxborough against the New England Patriots. Petty will need an extra strong performance to hold out any hope of being on the Jets roster next season.