Michael Vick could compete for a starting job if he joins the Jets this fall.
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Michael Vick is heading to the Jets on Friday for a meeting with the team as options continue to dwindle for a free agent market that has gone cold for the quarterback.
A team source tells Metro that Vick will be given a chance to compete for a starting job if signed and not just be a mentor if he becomes a Jet.
Once considered the class of this year’s quarterback market, Vick has gotten barely a sniff during free agency as teams seem reluctant to bid on an injury-prone quarterback set to turn 34 years old this summer. But according to NJ.com, Vick is set to visit the Jets over this weekend in what could be an ideal landing place for both player and team.
Vick has said he preferred going to a place he could start. The Jets, with last year’s second-round pick Geno Smith on the books after 16 starts last year, might not be an ideal fit. But Smith’s not a guaranteed starter, at least according to a team executive who spoke to Metro New York on the condition of anonymity.
“If Michael comes here, he will be given a chance to compete,” the source said. “Nothing beyond that is guaranteed. Geno has a bright future. We certainly drafted him thinking he can start in this league and he did last year. But competition is important to this franchise and Michael will know that if he comes here, he will be expected to compete. That will be our message.”
The sales pitch to Vick on Friday is clear: Come in and prove that you are the starter. You won’t be pigeonholed as a mentor to Smith.
Vick has a relationship with offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg, who had the same role with the Eagles for much of Vick’s time there. He’d be an athletic quarterback and a proven winner who can run the West Coast offense.
The team source said “it isn’t written in stone that he will carry a clipboard.”
The source said the Jets won’t guarantee him a starting job but that he won’t necessarily be sold solely on being a mentor to Smith.
“It is all about competition and nothing is guaranteed,” the source said. “If Michael comes in, he will have every chance to compete. Nothing is guaranteed for him or for anyone else on the roster. If he thinks he can win the starting job, this could be a good fit. It is up to him to see if he wants in to compete.”
Follow Jets beat writer Kristian Dyer on Twitter @KristianRDyer.
