Frank Reich's return to the NFL had to be the right fit, and he believes he's found that with the New York Jets.
It helped that Jets head coach Aaron Glenn is also Reich’s former teammate, but the opportunity to turn a team around was especially appealing to the team’s new offensive coordinator.
“I knew right away this was something I wanted to do, mainly because of (Glenn), but also because of the challenge, the opportunity to be a part of a staff and part of a team, organization, that has an opportunity to do something special and turn something around," Reich said Wednesday.
Reich served as Stanford’s interim coach in 2025 and led the team to a 4-8 record. He was previously the head coach of the Indianapolis Colts and Carolina Panthers and had been an offensive coordinator with the Chargers and Eagles.
After a 3-14 season in 2025, the Jets once again committed to a rebuild. That meant an overhaul of players and coaches, including quarterback Justin Fields, who was benched after nine starts and traded in March to Kansas City. Key defensive players Sauce Gardner and Quinnen Williams were traded at the deadline.
Glenn's return is one of the few common denominators heading into the season.
Quarterback Geno Smith, coming off a disappointing season with the Las Vegas Raiders, is poised to be Fields' successor after the Jets traded for him in March.
“I think he fits perfect,” Reich said. “I feel his resilience, his toughness. I always think the No. 1 attribute in any quarterback that you need, especially when you want to come and turn something around, is you need someone who's tough — tough mentality, tough physically. I feel that from Geno on every front.”
It's familiar territory for Smith, who was drafted by the Jets in the second round of the 2013 draft. He started for two seasons and was benched in 2015 following a preseason fight with a teammate that resulted in a broken jaw. Smith was a backup under Ryan Fitzpatrick in 2015 and 2016 before stops with the Giants, Chargers, Seahawks and Raiders.
Reich played in 10 games and started seven as the Jets quarterback in 1996.
Reich said he had a high grade on Smith when he came out of West Virginia in 2013, but the two hadn’t crossed paths until this offseason. He’s even more impressed with him now that they’ve gotten to work.
“If you play in this league long enough, everyone’s going to face (adversity), and if you are the right kind of leader, then you come out of it better,” he said. "I think that’s the version of Geno Smith we’re getting. We’re getting the best version of who he is, and I think his best football’s ahead of him.”
The Jets also traded up to draft Clemson quarterback Cade Klubnik in the fourth round, adding to a rookie class with first-rounders tight end Kenyon Sadiq and wide receiver Omar Cooper Jr.
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