It’s been nearly two years since Geno Smith’s world was turned upside down, since he lost his starting job with the Jets after a locker room sucker punch by then-teammate IK Enemkpali shattered his jaw.
So much has changed for Smith — he’s switched teams, from the Jets to the Giants, is battling merely to be a backup quarterback and is coming back from a torn ACL — and yet one thing remains the same.
His swagger.
“I just have to be myself,” he said after practice Wednesday, when asked what he has to show his new coaches. “I have the utmost confidence in myself and my ability. I don’t think I have to change one bit.”
And, yet, there’s no guarantee Smith will be with the Giants when the preseason ends. The fifth-year pro is sharing second teams reps with journeyman Josh Johnson, a player who lacks Smith’s resume, but has the edge in experience with coach Ben McAdoo’s offense.
Johnson, 31, was with the Giants last year, active for two games and spent the rest of the season on the practice squad. While Smith was mostly a bystander in the spring as he rehabbed his injury, Johnson was receiving key reps.
But Smith said it doesn’t feel any different for him to actually be fighting for a roster spot for the first time in his career. He’s described that merely as “outside noise,” preferring to talk about the opportunity he does have.
“Whenever I get a chance to go out there and prove my worth, or what I can do, that’s what I try to do,” the 26-year-old former second-round pick from West Virginia said. “In this league, every rep counts. On game day, every single play counts. You never know when you can make that play that’ll either make or break the game, so when you take that approach to the practice field, I think it just makes for a better player.”
Smith, of course, has the edge in NFL experience, with 29 starts. But he spent the past two years on the sideline. He’s thrown 56 passes since 2014, and spent most of his time either as a backup or injured — he missed the final nine games last year after tearing his ACL.
Smith, however, said his surgically repaired right knee feels great and he’s confident about it, not thinking about the knee when he’s on the field. Smith showed it by taking off and scrambling down field Wednesday. He’s not wearing a knee brace.
He also is feeling more comfortable in the offense with each practice, comparing it to the one he ran with the Jets in his first two years in the league for offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg. So while on paper Johnson may seem to have an edge, Smith doesn’t agree.
“I don’t think I’m playing catch-up. We’ll see how things go, but to me, it’s to go out there and do what you have to do,” he said. “Make the right checks, make the right reads and then just let your athleticism take over.
“It is a competition. That’s exactly what it is, and the best competitors, they always rise to the occasion.”