Jets' Fitzpatrick unimpressed with 25th ranking in ESPN QB poll
New York Jets quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick continues to get little respect in league circles, despite putting up career numbers in 2015.
Upon hearing that he had been ranked the NFL's 25th-best quarterback in an ESPN poll of unnamed league coaches and front office executives, Fitzpatrick wondered sarcastically how he's managed to stay in the league so long.
"That’s pretty typical, right?" Fitzpatrick said, according to Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News. "It's amazing that I’ve been the worst quarterback in the league for the last 11 years and somehow I'm still in the league. It's amazing how that happens, but it happens every year."
In fairness, the poll had eight quarterbacks below Fitzpatrick, but they were comprised of unproven young starters such as Brock Osweiler and Tyrod Taylor, and veterans who have yet to even secure their place under center, like Colin Kaepernick and Mark Sanchez.
Fitzpatrick was placed at the bottom of the third tier (five total), with the passers in his group described as legitimate starting quarterbacks, but those that need a strong defense and running game to succeed.
And that's exactly what Fitzpatrick has been for his entire 12-year career. He's always been viewed as a stop-gap starter with limited physical tools and a penchant for turnovers, and it appears one strong statistical season has done little to alter that perception.
Not that Fitzpatrick cares. The veteran quarterback knows he might not be the most physically talented player in the league, and is used to being dismissed.
"Let's say each team puts their top three quarterbacks out there: 32 teams, 96 quarterbacks," Fitzpatrick said. "And you line us up all in shorts and you put ski masks on us and have us throw. I’m going to be in the 90th or lower (percentile), I'm sure.
"But I almost pride myself on that, because I'm not a Combine guy. I'm not a guy that got recruited out of high school. I'm not a guy that was a first-round pick. I'm not a coveted free agent. I’m just a guy that comes in and works my tail off, and tries to do my job.”