EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — The New York Jets’ starting quarterback is uncertain, and their playoff hopes are fading.

It looks as though they’re in for a rough final four games.

Geno Smith was benched in favor of Matt Simms to start the second half of the Jets’ 23-3 loss to the Miami Dolphins on Sunday, sending New York’s shaky quarterback situation into a mess of uncertainty.

“We’ll take a look at the tape and we’ll evaluate it at the appropriate time,” Jets coach Rex Ryan said. “Obviously, I can’t tell you who’s starting. It’s safe to say we will put the guys in who we think will give us the best opportunity to be successful. I think that’s the way it always is, and that’s the way it’ll be moving forward. I can’t answer that question, though, right now.

“We need to see it and get everybody’s opinion and do what we think is in the best interest of our team.”

Smith had a brutal first half, going 4 for 10 for 29 yards with an interception and an 8.3 quarterback rating as the Jets (5-7) trailed 6-0. Smith, who has one touchdown and 11 interceptions in his last seven games, overthrew receivers a few times and couldn’t get the offense moving.

“I’ve got to look at myself in the mirror and figure out ways to get better,” Smith said. “It seems like I say this every week, but there’s always a way to get better and I’ve got plenty of room to improve, so I’ve just got to continue to plug at it and got to keep working.”

Simms, the son of former Giants star Phil Simms, jogged in to loud cheers from the MetLife Stadium crowd as the Jets opened the third quarter after Ryan and offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg converged on him in the locker room at halftime.

“They just told me to be ready,” Simms said. “Rex came up to me and said, `Are you ready to go? Do you know the game plan? Are you good to go?’

“I said, `Yes sir, I’m ready to go.’ That was it.”

Smith acknowledged that the benching stung.

“It’s tough to not be out there with my guys fighting, no matter what the score is,” Smith said. “But, you’ve got to suck it up and be a man about it.”

The move took Dolphins defensive end Olivier Vernon by surprise.

“I didn’t think they would do it like that, but we knew that we were getting in their heads,” he said. “It worked in our favor. We knew we were doing something right.”

The quarterback change did nothing to alter the game’s momentum as the Jets lost their third straight and looked every bit like a bunch that needs to start thinking about next season.

“It was an awful performance by us,” Ryan said.

On the other side, Ryan Tannehill and the Dolphins played like a team trying to keep its playoff hopes alive.