OC Frank Reich discusses plans for Jets’ offense, why Geno Smith is a ‘perfect fit’

When Frank Reich returned home following his lone season as Stanford’s interim head coach, he told his wife that he didn’t plan on jumping back to the NFL unless the right opportunity presented itself.

He received a couple calls from different teams around the league, none of which really moved the needle, but all of that changed once Aaron Glenn came knocking.

Reich ended up joining the Jets as their new offensive coordinator.

The long-time head coach's connection with Glenn played a significant role in the decision, but he’s also excited about the chance to help turn things back around.

“At this point, I love that idea,” Reich said Wednesday.

“Knowing how good the offensive line looked, you have a running back and receiver in Garrett [Wilson] and Breece [Hall] that are really good players, a really strong tight end room -- there was a lot to like looking at this team.”

Reich didn’t want to get into anything too specific about his plan for the Jets’ offense, but they've already established a clear vision with the majority of the personnel set in stone.

“Everything will be done to accentuate what the players do best,” he explained. “Obviously that starts up front, since it’s no secret or surprise to anyone to say that we’re going to want to run the football -- we’ll continue to emphasize that.

“They ran the ball well last year, so we’ll build on that, but you also have to find ways to be dynamic in the passing game and be excellent in situational football -- the way to do that is to create problems that the defense can’t solve.”

Tasked with leading that system will be 35-year-old quarterback Geno Smith.

Despite coming off a down year in which he threw a league-high 17 INT's, Reich feels that Smith is a perfect fit.

“I’ve liked Geno from day one,” he said. “When he was coming out of West Virginia I had a high grade on him -- I hadn't met him before coming here, and I’m kind of glad, because I’m even more impressed now meeting him in person.