Fitzpatrick: 'I lost the game of musical chairs' with Jets

Ryan Fitzpatrick may not be happy about the way his time with the New York Jets ended, but he doesn't sound particularly surprised.

After a career year in 2015 and a holdout the following offseason, the Jets brought back Fitzpatrick as their starter for 2016, hoping to make the leap into the playoffs. Instead, the veteran quarterback's play fell off a cliff, he was benched for both Geno Smith and Bryce Petty, and New York finished 5-11.

"I can't complain about it," Fitzpatrick said Tuesday, according to Connor Hughes of NJ Advance Media. "Last year, I was the starter. If you play well as the starter, you continue to play. I didn't play well, so I lost the game of musical chairs. They pulled out my chair from under me."

Fitzpatrick - who signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last week - wasn't shy about criticizing the Jets' front office and coaching staff during the season, putting them on blast for what he perceived to be a lack of belief.

While Jets head coach Todd Bowles admitted he partly caused the fracture in the relationship by failing to tell Fitzpatrick he'd been benched before announcing it to the media, few would argue the veteran pivot didn't deserve to lose his job.

Fitzpatrick threw 17 interceptions on 403 attempts and fumbled nine times (losing one). No quarterback who saw significant action finished with a worse passer rating than Fitzpatrick's 69.6.