Jets waive QB Simms at his request

FLORHAM PARK, N. J. — The New York Jets’ quarterback competition, however contested it will be, was declined by one player Thursday, when Matt Simms was waived.

The Bergen Record reported that Simms requested his release because he realized he had little hope of cracking the opening week roster after the Jets acquired Ryan Fitzpatrick, used a fourth-round pick on Bryce Petty and signed undrafted free agent Jake Heaps out of the University of Miami.

The Jets aren’t expected to carry more than three quarterbacks and incumbent Geno Smith, Fitzpatrick and Petty are locks to survive final cuts as long as they remain healthy. By getting cut now, Simms has a chance to land with another team before June’s mandatory minicamps open.

Simms, the son of former Giants Super Bowl MVP-winning quarterback Phil Simms, impressed the Jets with his work ethic and got into four games over the past two years, during which he was 19-of-39 for 195 yards, one touchdown and one interception.

But Simms, who played sporadically at three different colleges, was raw and still had a long way to go to even develop into a backup-caliber signal-caller in the NFL.

–A disastrous two-year reign as the Jets’ general manager didn’t destroy John Idzik’s career, after all.

Idzik became a full-time employee of an NFL team again Thursday, when he was named a special assistant to the general manager by the Jacksonville Jaguars. Idzik actually worked the last several months under Jaguars general manager Dave Caldwell as a salary cap consultant.

“(Idzik) will do a little bit of everything,” Caldwell told the Florida Times-Union on Thursday afternoon. “He’ll work a lot with the salary cap and budgets and also some negotiations with free agents.”

Coincidentally, Idzik ended up as the Jets’ choice as general manager following the 2012 season when Caldwell, among many others, turned the gig down. The Jets were reportedly ready to sign Caldwell and give him a $1 million housing allowance, but he chose the Jaguars instead.

–While Idzik landed on his feet following a rocky Jets tenure, the same cannot yet be said for quarterback Michael Vick, who remains unsigned five months after the conclusion of his lone season in the green and white.

Vick appeared disinterested and ill-prepared last season, when he was never given the chance to compete for the starting job with Geno Smith. He still viewed himself as a starter, even though he admitted to not taking his backup reps seriously after he struggled in relief of Smith in San Diego on Oct. 12.

Now, Vick is at least talking a good game about being willing to serve as a backup and a mentor at the age of 35.

“I see my role as being a mentor first and foremost, a confident quarterback who can come off the bench if necessary in whatever the situation may be and win football games,” Vick told The Virginian-Pilot.

Vick is working out at a gym owned by ex-Pro Bowl receiver Chris Chambers, but has not had any known visits during free agency.

–Guard Willie Colon was one of ex-head coach Rex Ryan’s trusted allies in the locker room. But even Colon admits Ryan was too lax with the Jets during his final season at the helm.

“We had our issues last year,” Colon told ESPN.com on Wednesday. “If you’re asking us to be accountable, part of being accountable is being truthful and that was one of our issues.”

The Jets had multiple known instances of tardiness involving quarterback Geno Smith and safety Calvin Pryor, both of whom were disciplined and/or benched for arriving late to meetings. The Jets were also often undisciplined on the field, no one more so than Colon, who was flagged for 12 penalties last season, including seven false starts.

Colon, who said he still has “the utmost respect for Rex,” realizes there will be no margin for error, for him or anyone else, under new coach Todd Bowles.

“You look around and you see legitimate ballplayers, working,” said Colon, who re-signed with the Jets on a one-year deal in March. “It raises the competition level. You kind of feel like if you don’t fit the mold of what Bowles wants, it’ll be hard for you to survive.”