Geno Smith was drafted by the circus of the NFL the New York Jets and it wasn’t long before he was thrown to the media wolves. There’s been a few anonymous sources throwing Smith under the bus and they have no intentions on stopping. Read more after the jump.
ESPNNewYork.com’s Rich Cimini cited a league source to report Friday that at least one quarterback-needy team in the top 10 of the 2013 NFL Draftpassed on Smith because of what they perceived as a “diva attitude” during his pre-draft visit.
Yahoo! Sports reported this week that Smith turned off some by wasting time on his cell phone, texting friends and staying tethered to Twitter during meet-and-greets with a host of teams.
When Smith slid right out of the first round last Thursday night, he made waves by threatening to fly home. More trouble came when he fired his agents after the draft.
“He’s going to have a tough time in New York,” one anonymous NFC scout told Cimini. “Right now, he’s coming off as a spoiled, pampered brat.”
The Jets weren’t overly thrilled with Smith’s combine interview, but general manager John Idzik raved about the quarterback after flying to Morgantown for a second visit. The Jets came away with a “real good feel” for Smith, Idzik said, and that’s really all that matters.
Smith has been squeaky clean off the field, but who could guess from the snowstorm of criticism he’s facing? After all, it takes little courage for anonymous scouts to pile on a player who hasn’t taken a professional snap.
It takes plenty of courage to endure it.
