Bryce Petty understands the harsh reality of the Jets' quarterback situation this offseason.
And though he didn't come out and say it Monday -- when the Jets packed up their lockers and headed home -- he surely knows he might have played his last game for this organization.
"That's what it is, is uncertainty," he said. "I try not to put too much thought into things that I can't control, so just excited about the future in general. Hopefully, it's here. I want to be here. But if it's not, that's OK, too. It's a business. Everybody understands that."
The Jets have to make a high-profile quarterback addition this offseason, since neither Petty (fourth-round draft pick in 2015) nor Christian Hackenberg (second-round pick in 2016) has shown enough to be trusted with the starting job going forward.
Over the past two seasons, Petty has played in 10 games, with seven starts. His stats are unimpressive: 53.1 completion percentage, four touchdowns, 10 interceptions, 57.7 quarterback rating. Hackenberg hasn't even appeared in a regular season game yet.
The Jets this offseason will either sign a high-profile free agent quarterback or draft one early. Either way, it looks like Petty's days with the team could be numbered.
Petty and Hackenberg are both under contract for 2018, with Petty entering the final year of his rookie deal. Josh McCown, the veteran journeyman who mostly impressed for the Jets this year, is a pending unrestricted free agent. He will turn 39 years old in July.
If the Jets sign a quarterback like Kirk Cousins, McCown could be a reliable backup. If they draft a quarterback like Baker Mayfield, McCown would be a valuable mentor.
And as far as Hackenberg goes, even though he looks like a lost cause, the Jets might not want to give up on him after just two seasons.
Since the Jets surely aren't going to carry four quarterbacks on their active roster in the regular season, that leaves Petty as the likely odd man out -- a guy who has played and not shown enough, especially if the Jets re-sign McCown to be their backup and/or mentor quarterback.
If things don't work out with McCown, or he decides to retire, the Jets could retain Petty as the backup to a veteran quarterback, with Hackenberg in the quarterback room as well.
But if the Jets draft a quarterback instead of signing a veteran, it wouldn't make sense to put that young guy with Petty and Hackenberg in the pecking order. The Jets would need a veteran of some sort to be a reliable backup to the high draft pick.
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Ideally for Petty, he would have shown more this season while starting the final three games. But he completed just 49.1 percent of his passes, threw one touchdown and three picks, and had a 55.1 quarterback rating. Not nearly good enough. And Petty took the blame for that.
"That's on me," he said. "But it's nothing you can't fix, and that's the positive part of it."
Will the Jets give him a chance to return and fix it? Or have they seen all they need to see?
Darryl Slater may be reached at dslater@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @DarrylSlater. Find NJ.com Jets on Facebook.