Idzik building Jets for sustainable success

ORLANDO, Fla. -- Jets general manager John Idzik doesn't believe the addition of Michael Vick will hurt the development of second-year quarterback Geno Smith. Just the opposite, in fact.

"I think it helps Geno," Idzik said on Tuesday afternoon at the NFL owners meetings. "One, Mike brings a wealth of experience, both on the field in the NFL and off the field. He's been through a lot. He's grown as a player. He's grown as a person. I think that helps not only Geno, it will help [other] guys. That went into that decision [to sign Vick] and trying to elevate not only [Geno], but everybody around him. I think in that vein, we succeeded."

Idzik declined to discuss Vick's former teammate, Eagles wide receiver DeSean Jackson, who is on the trading block. Despite Jets owner Woody Johnson saying on Sunday that the team has interest in Jackson - although only if the player is released, not via trade - Idzik wouldn't specifically talk about Jackson.

"We won't mention anybody by name, especially those on other rosters," he said. "I think that Woody meant what he's meant all along, that we will explore any avenue to bolster our roster, to improve our talent, to improve our depth. If an opportunity presents itself, we're going to consider it. If it merits it, we'll act on it. I think that's what was meant by it."

Idzik did say that investigating a player's background was important before adding him to the roster. Jackson has occasionally had a rocky time in Philadelphia, including his recent expression of frustration with a five-year contract he signed in 2012. While not being specific to Jackson, Idzik said it was important to ascertain whether a given player could fit in with the Jets.

"We're in a human business," Idzik said. "Everyone's human and responds differently in different environments. You do lean on people who have had experience and exposure to those players. There's quite a bit of transition and movement in the league and by that, you gain insight from head coaches, front office people, other players that have lived with this individual. You gain a little insight into how he handles situations, how he learns, how he handles stress in situations, how he handles the media. You bank on all that."

Idzik said he believes the Jets are on the right path to building a consistent winner. That said, Johnson said on Sunday that he is tired of using the word "patience."

"I wouldn't mistake deliberate for lack of activity or patience, if you want to call it that," Idzik said. "We want to be well researched with what we do. But we'll be active with the thought of being productive today. We don't look at this thing as 'Let's see where we are in 2-3 years.' We want to know where we are today. When I say to you that this is really a day-to-day proposition, when you concentrate on the here and now and we try to make the best informed decisions, based on what we've got to that point. We want to win now, we want to win tomorrow, we want to win the next day. We want something sustainable. We don't want something that's just short-lived. We're going to make very sound decisions. Those sound decisions, we believe, will lead to sustained success, not just a flash."

Idzik said he didn't sense a change in Johnson's demeanor.

"Not really. I don't want to get caught up in semantics, but we're saying that there are some things that transpired. Free agency, there's a lot of action. It doesn't always translate into achievement. We're active. We're researching different ways to build our roster, but it's not all going to happen at once.

"It's just telling our fans that we're building this thing with a very firm foundation and that does take time," he said. "But we also realize we're building this for success now and going into the future."