In Brandon Marshall's opinion, there's only one way to have success in the NFL. Sure, you need great players, but there's more to it than that. All 53 on the roster need to be on the same page. If they're not, then your talent level doesn't matter.

"You can have the biggest guys and the fastest people," Marshall said via conference call. "If you can't transfer that to the football field, you have nothing."


 

So, Marshall, who has been a Jet for less than a week, has started the early process of building that chemistry. The person he's looking to build it with? Quarterback Geno Smith. 

Friday night, Smith will travel to meet Marshall in Western Florida where the two will begin a series of workouts together. While Marshall says he's known Smith since his rookie year, this will be the first time the two truly meet on the football field. There is sure to be a feeling out period, but Marshall is anxious to see what the former second-round pick has. 

"When we both started communicating," Marshall said, "We both decided it would probably be cool to get together and work out for the rest of the offseason. Maybe try to get other guys down so we can start building chemistry. 

"I just think (Geno) has a drive and a passion that a lot of people don't see. From my conversations with him, he's really got me excited to come in and service him." 

At 6-4 and 230-pounds, Marshall may be the most physically gifted player Smith has played with in his short two-year NFL career.

But it's not just Marshall's build that makes him unique; it's the way he's applies it to the football field that has made him one of the game's best. 

In his nine NFL seasons, Marshall has caught 773 passes for 9,771 yards with 65 touchdowns. Seven times Marshall has had more than 1,000 yards receiving and five times he's caught 100 or more balls. He's a matchup nightmare for most defensive backs, and now he's thrust into an offense that already features receiver Eric Decker, running back Chris Ivory and up-and-coming tight end Jace Amaro. 

With those names and more on the Jets offense, Marshall knows there will be games where he's 'the guy,' and others where someone else steps up. To him, that's perfectly fine. In fact, it's very similar to the situation Marshall was in during his time with the Chicago Bears. For the last two years, Marshall has shared touches with the likes of receiver Alshon Jeffery, running back Matt Forte and tight end Martellus Bennett. 

"We all have to make a decision to be selfless," Marshall said. "With this offense and what (Jets offensive coordinator) Chan (Gailey) does with spreading the ball around, I think that I'm going to be in a position to take my game to an entire other level."

While Marshall will workout with Smith beginning on Saturday, it may not be Smith lining up under center Week 1. On Wednesday, the Jets traded for quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick and the expectation is that both Smith and Fitzpatrick will compete for the starting spot in training camp. While Smith has all the physical tools to be a solid NFL quarterback, he's often made mistakes that have cost the Jets potential victories.

In 30 games, Smith has thrown 34 interceptions and just 24 touchdowns. Fitzpatrick, meanwhile, is far less of a gunslinger and more of a game manager. Last year for the Houston Texans, Fitzpatrick threw for 2,483 yards with 17 touchdowns and eight interceptions in 12 games. He completed 63.1 percent of his passes. 

The last Jet to have a higher completion percentage than Fitzpatrick's number last year? Brett Favre in 2008.

Marshall knows there will be a quarterback competition and he expects nothing less from Jets new coach Todd Bowles. If Marshall learned anything about Bowles during the two's time together with the Miami Dolphins, it's that the coach loves competition. Marshall pointed to the Jets signing of cornerbacks Darrelle Revis, Buster Skrine and Antonio Cromartie to hammer home his point. 

"I'm excited to see (the cornerbacks) compete against each other," Marshall said. "Also, us receivers compete against each other and against them. I think this is going to be great for both Geno and Fitzpatrick because it pushes you. If you're just the guy, you're going to get too comfortable. I'm excited. It's a pretty cool situation we're in. We've got so many guys that can play ball and compete." 

And Marshall believes that competition will do nothing but bring the Jets closer. 

"It's gonna be a special journey," Marshall said. "It's gonna be a tough journey, but it's going to be cool to be a part of something where you can say I was a part of that from the beginning. I was a part of us coming together."

Connor Hughes is the New York Jets beat writer for About.com Sports. He can be reached on twitter: @Connor_J_Hughes, or via email: Connor_J_Hughes@yahoo.com