Bowles announced after the Jets’ 41-10 loss to the Indianapolis Colts on Monday night that Petty would start the rest of the season, sending Ryan Fitzpatrick to the sideline.

The coach says Tuesday during a conference call that Fitzpatrick will serve as Petty’s backup for at least the next few weeks.

He adds that rookie Christian Hackenberg, a second-round pick, likely will not see any game action this season, barring an injury to Petty.

Bowles acknowledged that he never directly told Fitzpatrick of the decision after he ”got tied up with a few things.”

The two will talk Wednesday, Bowles says, and adds that he could’ve handled it better.

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New York Jets coach Todd Bowles was toeing the fine line between trying to win games and preparing for the future.

So, about two to three weeks ago, Bowles decided that if his team’s playoff hopes were over, he would turn to Bryce Petty at quarterback for the final four games and send Ryan Fitzpatrick to the sideline.

”We knew if we were out of contention and out of the running,” Bowles said during a conference call Tuesday, ”in my mind and in my head, I told the coaches that we would give (Petty) the last quarter of the season to try to make progress and get better week by week.”

The Jets were mathematically eliminated from the postseason picture on Monday night, and in epic fashion while getting blown out 41-10 by the Indianapolis Colts .

Bowles announced after the loss that he was going with Petty the rest of the season . Until late Monday night, the coach had justified starting Fitzpatrick the past few games by saying he thought the veteran gave New York the best chance to win.

He was asked Tuesday if playing Petty was a shift in that philosophy.

”Just trying to win,” Bowles said, ”and it’s trying to see what I have at quarterback with Bryce.”

Despite the plan, Bowles acknowledged a winning streak that would have kept the Jets in the playoff hunt would have postponed the move a bit – maybe even until the final game of the season.

”Obviously, we would have stuck with Ryan,” Bowles said. ”But now that we’re not in contention, we want to get (Petty) some experience, so we’re going to play him a little more.”

Fitzpatrick, in what could have been his last game action for the Jets, was 5 of 12 for 81 yards with an interception against the Colts. He was ineffective, as was the rest of the offense, so Bowles pulled him and went with Petty in the third quarter.

Petty finished 11 of 25 for 135 yards with a touchdown to Robby Anderson and two interceptions. He made his first NFL start three weeks ago in place of an injured Fitzpatrick, and was mostly mediocre in a 9-6 loss to Los Angeles. Petty, a fourth-round draft pick out of Baylor last year, will now get a four-game audition to show whether he can be the Jets’ quarterback of the future.

”I think it’s a great opportunity for me, but I didn’t want it to be this way,” Petty said after the game. ”I would much rather have us in the same situation we were in last year – on the brink of making the playoffs. What I do know is that opportunities are few and far between in this league, so you’ve got to capitalize on them any chance you get.”

Petty has shown a big arm at times, but he also can be erratic. He’s a second-year player still learning at this level, and the little details will take some time.

”Just trying to get my mind and my feet in sync,” he said. ”I still think my mind is a little bit faster than my feet sometimes. I’m getting better at seeing things. Now I’ve just got to (think), now, OK, I see it, here’s the throw. You know? And go back to, this is what I do. That’ll get easier every time I get out there. I’ll get better.”

Bowles said Fitzpatrick will serve as Petty’s backup for at least the next few weeks. He added that rookie Christian Hackenberg, a second-round pick who’s generally still considered a project, likely will not see any game action this season, barring an injury to Petty.

When Bowles announced to the media after the game that Petty would be under center the rest of the season, there was some confusion over whether the quarterbacks knew – and when.

On Monday, Bowles acknowledged that he could have done a better job of communicating things to Fitzpatrick, who appeared to not know that it would be Petty’s job the last four games, regardless of the outcome Monday night.

”I didn’t talk to him – the coaches told him,” Bowles said. ”I was meaning to talk to him and I got tied up with a few things. I’ll make sure we talk (Wednesday) morning.”

Those ”few things” were giving his team an earful after its embarrassing performance in front of a national TV audience.

”He tried to cover for me,” Bowles said of Fitzpatrick. ”Like I said, I had a lot on my mind. I got some things off my chest. It kind of went over the wrong way, definitely.”

NOTES: Bowles said ”it’s possible” C Nick Mangold could be shut down for the rest of the season after aggravating an ankle injury. Mangold returned Monday night after missing four games. … After ripping his team’s effort after the game, Bowles backpedaled a bit after watching the film. ”Actually, I thought the effort was a lot better,” he said, ”but I thought we made some bonehead mistakes that cost us.” … Bowles on the lack of DL Sheldon Richardson’s snaps in the second half: ”It was just game plan.”

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Throw in all the penalties, mistakes and questionable play calling, and the New York Jets have the troubling look and feel of a dysfunctional bunch.

Todd Bowles’ team is 3-6, matching its loss total from last season, and its playoff prospects already appear highly unlikely. The second-year coach, however, doesn’t agree with the increasingly negative perception.

”Not at all,” Bowles said during a conference call Monday. ”I know what reality is, so we know what everything is inside this building and we’re a close-knit group.”

But, perhaps the most glaring sign of trouble within came Sunday, when Bowles benched star defensive linemen Muhammad Wilkerson and Sheldon Richardson for the first quarter of New York’s 27-23 loss at Miami.

Bowles repeated Monday that it was ”a coach’s decision,” adding that non-injury and non-football issues are kept in-house. He also declined to say whether tardiness is an issue with the two.

However, reports emerged that both Wilkerson and Richardson were disciplined for being late to a team meeting. NJ.com reported that the two have been late or no-showed more than once. NFL Network reported that Wilkerson missed a walkthrough and a defensive meeting at which his birthday was being celebrated – complete with a cake – the day before the game against Baltimore last month. Wilkerson did not play in that game because of an ailing ankle.

”Those are reports,” Bowles said. ”Those things are handled in-house and I know how we handle things in here, and everybody is accountable for their actions. We handle things in here as we handle them, and I’m perfectly fine with those two (players’) commitments.”

When asked what makes him satisfied with both Wilkerson and Richardson, Bowles said simply: ”They put in work. They put in a lot of work.”

A sideline exchange between wide receiver Brandon Marshall and quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick appeared to get a bit heated, although both downplayed it after the game. Bowles did the same, brushing aside the notion that it was another example of a team tearing apart.

”We had more turmoil going last year when we won four or five in a row,” Bowles said. ”This year is normal. Brandon and Fitz talk on the sideline all the time. That’s just football talk. That goes without saying. And, Mo and Sheldon are fine.”

On Monday, Marshall said it was ”business as usual” among the players, with the focus on moving forward to their next game at home against the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday.

He said he feels good about the Jets’ locker room, calling it ”one of the best I’ve been in.” He was lukewarm, however, when asked if he thought every player was committed to a common goal.

”You never know,” he said. ”It’s the National Football League. There are so many different personalities in the room. I love what Coach (Marc) Trestman said when he first got hired in Chicago, one of his first team meetings, he said: We don’t need all. We just need the right ones.”’

Tackle Ben Ijalana thinks the Jets have those guys, along with the right approach.

”Everyone is focused on trying to right the ship and we’re playing a game at home,” he said. ”We’re not trying to lull down. We’re just trying to get back on the right track, continue to get these wins going.”

The Jets are uncertain whether Fitzpatrick will start because of a sprained left knee , and some fans and media says New York should go with second-year quarterback Bryce Petty regardless.

”It’s expected,” Marshall said of the perception that the Jets are a team in chaos. ”This is what happens, usually, when you lose. … We’re sitting at 3-6, we’re disappointed in our play, disappointed in ourselves.”

And the players aren’t alone.

Bowles has taken his share of the blame, too, and had missteps in his play calls throughout the season.

”I haven’t done a good job,” he said. ”We’re 3-6. It speaks for itself. I can do a lot better job of coaching.”

Despite all that, though, Bowles insisted he has total control of his team.

”Completely, yes,” he said. ”I know me and I know how I address the team and I know how the team responds. I have no issues with that.”

Penalties are a big problem, with 10 called in the game against the Dolphins. Perhaps none was as glaring as the offsides call on Antonio Allen, whose mistake on a kickoff resulted in a re-kick – and Kenyan Drake returned it 96 yards for the go-ahead touchdown in the fourth quarter.

”We don’t finish,” Ijalana said. ”I would say it’s a combination of not finishing and sometimes starting slow. In this league, those things get you in trouble. It’s very hard to win games like that.”

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After two skirmishes on the practice field on a steamy Sunday, the New York Jets coach ordered his players to run five penalty gassers – from one sideline to the other, and back – and followed it up with a huddle at midfield.

”We understand that we can talk mess and we can jaw at each other,” Bowles said after practice. ”As long as the hits are clean, we’re fine. But we’ve got to take care of each other at the same time. There’s no cutting and there’s no hitting in the back and those types of things. There’s no cheap shots. If it’s good clean play, I don’t have a problem. They can talk all day.”

No punches were thrown, as there was in the locker room earlier in the week when quarterback Geno Smith had his jaw broken by then-teammate Ikemefuna Enemkpali. But the players were certainly riled up Sunday, with plenty of pushing and shoving.

Right tackle Breno Giacomini and linebacker Quinton Coples got into it in the first skirmish, and backup center Dalton Freeman and linebacker Jason Babin tussled in the second – with a bunch of others piling on. Both were over quickly, with some players playfully giving each other love taps afterward.

But moments later, every player paid the price.

”I almost just walked right to the line,” wide receiver Jeremy Kerley said. ”I already knew.”

So did the rest of the Jets players – they just didn’t know how many gassers they’d have to run.

”It’s at my discretion on how much,” Bowles said.

Several players were down on one knee when they were done, and others bent over with their hands on their knees as temperatures hit the mid-90s.

Bowles made it clear to his players at the start of training camp that fighting won’t be tolerated, and that stance has certainly been magnified in light of the incident last Tuesday that sidelined Smith for 6-10 weeks. The coach, however, said that didn’t lower his tolerance for fighting among the players.

”No, my rule is the same going in,” he said. ”You fight and hit somebody on the field, I don’t think it got bad out here, but you want to prevent it before it started.”

Bowles made it clear, however, that he wants physical competition in practice. The two tussles Sunday were the first real shoving matches after a few minor bouts earlier this summer.

”It’s training camp,” he said. ”It started two weeks ago. It’s about time.”

On-field tussles are not unique as just about every team has them at some point during the grind of training camp. Bowles even acknowledged that he anticipates there will ”probably” be some more on the field at Jets camp.

”Testosterone,” Bowles said. ”You get tired, guys are out there for a long time. It’s football.”

There’s a fine line, however, between being physical and going too far on the field – something Bowles recognizes.

”We’re not trying to hurt each other,” he said. ”At the end of the day, we all need each other, but it’s a fine line. The mess-talking, the bravado and swagger and everything is fine, but you have to understand situational football at the same time. You can’t fight and be braggadocious and be loud if you don’t understand what’s going on in the game.

”That makes for a dumb player and we are not trying to have dumb players.”

Bowles played eight years in the NFL as a safety, and said he didn’t do too much trash-talking during his time. He did, however, get into the occasional camp skirmish.

”There’s been a couple,” he said, laughing. ”Some of them, you jump in because it’s your teammate and some of them, you get a little tussle but nothing big.”

So, how’d he do?

”I didn’t get hurt,” Bowles said with a big grin, ”so I must have been OK.”

NOTES: S Calvin Pryor was not at practice and will be out for ”quite a few days” while tending to personal matters. Bowles said there was a death in Pryor’s family, and the safety likely won’t be ready to play in the team’s next preseason game against Atlanta on Friday night. … Rookie WR Devin Smith sidelined since breaking a few ribs and puncturing a lung on the second day of camp practice said he’s healing, but still isn’t cleared for physical activities. Smith said his lung is healed, and he was just recently moved from a hospital-style bed that kept his upper body raised to his regular bed. … WR Brandon Marshall watched from the sideline toward the end of practice after appearing to injure his right arm or shoulder. Bowles had no immediate word on the nature of the injury.

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