At the end of the season, Brandon Marshall was convinced Ryan Fitzpatrick would re-sign with the New York Jets, saying, "He's definitely coming back."

He doesn't sound so sure anymore.

On Friday, Marshall spoke of his affinity for the free-agent quarterback, praising his intangibles. In doing so, he acknowledged for the first time that the thought of Fitzpatrick playing elsewhere has crept into his mind.

"The way we communicate, the way we practice together, the way we bring other guys together, I’ve never seen that anywhere else -- and I’ve been a lot of places and I’ve had a lot of quarterbacks,” Marshall said Friday on The Rich Eisen Show.

“That’s the toughest thing for me when I think about him potentially putting on another jersey," the Pro Bowl wide receiver said. "What we had and what we have is hard to create. It took us almost a year to do that; well, six months to do that. Most of the time, it takes guys a couple of years. We feel like we’re really close. We have a great defense. We have a consistent offense. We have great coaches. All we need to do now is continue to get more reps with the same guys.”

Ryan Fitzpatrick and Brandon Marshall developed a strong rapport in their first season together. AP Photo/Seth Wenig

Fitzpatrick remains unsigned, locked in a stalemate with the Jets. They're far apart in negotiations. The Jets, exploring contingency options, hosted free agent Robert Griffin III on a Friday/Saturday recruiting visit. "An interesting development," Marshall said of the RG III visit.

Marshall spoke glowingly of the Jets' biggest offseason addition, running back Matt Forte. He knows him well, as they played together for three seasons in Chicago.

“He’s the most underrated running back in the history of our game,” Marshall said. “Most people say the last eight years since he’s been in the league. In the history of football, he’s the most underrated running back ever, ever.”