Can Geno Smith really get Jets to ‘promised land’?

Geno Smith has never won a playoff game in his 12-year NFL career. His lone appearance came in 2022 in a first-round loss.

Despite that, New York Jets head coach Aaron Glenn turned heads at league meetings in Arizona this week with his remarks about the upside for the 35-year-old signal-caller.

“I just feel like he’s the guy that’s going to lead us to the promised land,” Glenn said Tuesday morning at the NFL’s annual meeting.

From winning two games… to potential Super Bowl upside?

Glenn’s comments were bold, and they placed a target on his new starting quarterback going into the 2026 NFL season.

But are Glenn’s comments really far-fetched?

Today, we’ll break down whether it’s possible that Smith could not only get the Jets to the playoffs, but also lead them on a miracle run.

Geno Smith to the promised land?

New York hasn’t posted a winning record since 2015. They have gone 15 straight seasons without making the playoffs.

Any coach who says a quarterback can lead that franchise to the Super Bowl is being completely disingenuous. It’s an unnecessary comment to make before Smith throws a pass in his second run with the team.

Glenn should know better—especially because Smith’s struggles last year are well documented. The West Virginia product threw a league-high 17 interceptions for a Raiders team that earned the first overall draft pick.

Despite the down year, Glenn isn’t blinking.

“Listen, I know he had his struggles,” Glenn said. “I think a lot of quarterbacks, they have their struggles.

“But I do know this: He understands exactly what happened last year. I don’t want to get too far into that because I wasn’t there, obviously, with the Raiders. But I do know that, man, there are some things that he knows he can correct. He’s at fault on some of those, but there are some things that he knows that he’s going to get better at, and I look forward to him doing that.”

If the Jets are going to match those “promised land” remarks, New York will need Smith to be more than just improved.

They’ll need him to be more than he ever has been.

Jets’ 2026 outlook

The Jets’ ceiling in 2026 is short of a Super Bowl victory. No fan or analyst alive is going to expect them to dominate to a level that is even enough to surpass the likes of the New England Patriots or Buffalo Bills in their own division.

Again, Glenn putting that kind of target on Smith’s back is one of the oddest things a coach coming off a three-win season could do. New York doesn’t have the roster to back those words up.

But can Smith get the team to a respectable increase in wins and passing numbers?

That is, at least, what the expectation for Glenn should be in his second season as coach. If he wants to continue coaching into 2027, the former Jets cornerback turned coach needs to simply focus on winning significantly more games than he did last season, rather than putting Super Bowl thoughts in his fans’ minds.

Gang Green’s 2026 outlook is simple: improve not only in the win column but in quality of play. That’s what the team should expect from Smith.

Nothing more and nothing less.