Free-agent quarterback Geno Smith has a visit scheduled on Saturday with the New York Giants, a source confirmed to ESPN. Smith had spent the first four years of his career on the other side of town with the New York Jets.
The visit was first reported by The Record (New Jersey).
The Giants currently have one quarterback under contract. They don’t have a backup for Eli Manning with Ryan Nassib and Josh Johnson as free agents. Nassib is recovering from elbow surgery in December.
Smith, 26, is an intriguing option. He’s young and talented, but comes with question marks. He was originally a second-round pick out of West Virginia in the 2013 NFL draft, once viewed as the Jets’ quarterback of the future.
It didn’t work out that way. Smith’s tenure was littered with uneven performances and controversy, the most notable an altercation with teammate IK Enemkpali that left him with a broken jaw and without a starting job.
Smith tore the ACL in his knee during his only start of the 2016 season. It’s possible he may not be ready until the start of next season.
His visit with the Giants will almost certainly be focused largely on his health. Smith believes he will be available for the start of training camp, but there are concerns it might take until just before the start of the season for him to be ready.
ESPN’s Josina Anderson reported that Smith’s visit with the Giants was not expected to include a workout.
Smith played in 33 games -- 30 starts -- in his four seasons with the Jets. He completed 57.9 percent of his passes and threw 28 touchdowns with 36 interceptions. Smith started just one game in the past two seasons.
