The Jets capped off their preseason slate with a 19-17 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles on Friday night.
A month after they began training camp, the Jets can now officially look ahead to Week 1 and their date against Aaron Rodgers and the Pittsburgh Steelers at MetLife Stadium on Sunday, Sept. 7.
But before we look ahead to the season opener, here is what we learned from the matchup against the Eagles.
TAYLOR AND THE BACKUP QB QUESTION
With Justin Fields sitting out Friday’s game, undrafted rookie Brady Cook got the start against the defending Super Bowl champs.
Although he completed 13-of-19 passes for 99 yards (with an interception), the Jets’ offense had trouble getting out of neutral with Cook under center. During his first six drives, the Jets’ offense failed to have more than five plays in any of them.
It wasn’t until the final drive in the half that Cook led the Jets to points after Nick Folk‘s 41-yard field goal before halftime.
Adrian Martinez wasn’t much better after he completed 7-of-14 passes for 86 yards. He also had an interception, and a lost fumble. But he did lead the Jets back after trailing 19-3 early in the fourth quarter.
Tyrod Taylor was in attendance on the sideline, but he did not play against the Eagles. The veteran QB was previously ruled out of the preseason after he had his knee scoped earlier this month.
Jets coach Aaron Glenn told reporters that he expects Taylor to be ready for Week 1.
“I’m confident he will be. I am,” Glenn told reporters after Friday’s game.
If Taylor is not 100% cleared to play against the Steelers, the Jets need to look at other backup quarterback options.
Last week, the Jets had C.J. Beathard and Nathan Peterman in for tryouts. Neither Cook nor Martinez has taken a snap in an NFL regular-season game.
If anything were to happen to Fields, the Jets need to make sure they have a proven veteran who has taken meaningful snaps.
PENALTIES ARE STILL AN ISSUE
Although it is only preseason, penalties continue to be an issue for the Jets.
They committed 10 penalties for 78 yards in Friday’s finale. A week earlier, the Jets registered seven penalties for 65 yards in a loss to the Giants.
Glenn has been adamant about stopping the self-inflicting wounds. That’s why he had officials present during training camp practices and communicated their calls with players on the field.
The Jets have led the NFL in penalties each of the last two seasons, which is why one of Glenn’s focuses is to eliminate “undisciplined” penalties. In particular, Glenn wants to remove the pre-snap errors and post-play penalties. But judging by the preseason, the Jets still have some work to do in that area.
VETERANS ON THE ROSTER BUBBLE
Most of the time, when the starters are resting in preseason games, so are the veteran players.
That wasn’t the case with Jeremy Ruckert and Derrick Nnadi, who both played against the Eagles. Could both players be on the roster bubble? Ruckert is projected to be the Jets’ second-string tight end, but has suffered from a case of the drops during training camp.
The Jets signed the veteran Nnadi to a one-year, $1.42 million contract in March, hoping he would solidify their defensive tackle position opposite Quinnen Williams. But that hasn’t been the case. He played during the fourth quarter against the Eagles, which says he is far from a lock to make the team.
Nnadi has been at times non-existent during training camp practices to the point where younger players such as Phidarian Mathis and Leonard Taylor III have outplayed the three-time Super Bowl winner. On top of that, the Jets acquired both Harrison Phillips and Jowon Briggs in separate trades with the Vikings and Browns.
Now it seems like Nnadi could be on the chopping block. The 53-man roster deadline is on Tuesday at 4 p.m., but the Jets could start releasing players as early as this weekend.
“I told the guys this week, man, their job in this game was to make it hard on me as far as the evaluation process to make our team,” Glenn said. “But then again, put something on tape to make somebody else’s team. And I’m not afraid to say that to the players because that’s what this league is about.
“And anything I can do to help those guys, I’m going to definitely help them. But my process this week is making sure we look at this game, get this game out of our system, get ready to go to practice on Monday, we have a walkthrough on Tuesday, and then, obviously, we’ve got to make our cuts.”
