If Rex Ryan is uneasy about the three quarterbacks on the roster, it is not showing in his interactions with the media.
"I am very confident in those three young quarterbacks," Ryan said of Kellen Clemens, Brett Ratliff and Erik Ainge.
Only Clemens has played in an NFL game, but Ryan said he would not seek a veteran to join the competition to replace retired Brett Favre.
"Really, the first thing I would think is, 'To do what? To be the backup quarterback and things?'" Ryan said, mentioning new quarterbacks coach Matt Cavanaugh as the team's veteran presence. "I'm very comfortable with Matt being the mentor for these young quarterbacks."
This seems like posturing at least to a degree. It remains unlikely the Jets will have only these three quarterbacks on the roster when camp opens. Cavanaugh is there to guide his players, but it does help to have an extra set of eyes. A current player has insights a coach would not. Even when the Pats had Josh McDaniels, an excellent coach in his own right, they signed Vinny Testaverde in 2006 to give Tom Brady an additional mentor. There are quarterbacks out there like Byron Leftwich who have upside and could add to the competition also.