Observations from the New York Jets’ Preseason Opener

Here are some initial observations from the New York Jets’ performance against the Jacksonville Jaguars.

In their preseason opener, the New York Jets topped the Jacksonville Jaguars by a 17-13 score, secured by an interception in the waning seconds.  The score is not as important as player development, so let’s look at some observations from the evening.

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Jalin Marshall

He was one of the players I wrote about here on NFL Spin Zone as one of the players to watch in the game, and he did not disappoint.  The undrafted rookie out of Ohio State got into the game early and made his presence felt.  Marshall ran an excellent comeback route for his one catch of the game, showing highly refined footwork.  But that was just one way he made an impact.

We knew Marshall could run back kicks, but what we didn’t know is that he would break off an 84-yard return on his first career try.  I know it’s early, but if he continues to make plays like that, there is no doubt he will find himself on the final 53-man roster.

Depth at Wide Receiver

The competition is going to be interesting, because the Jets are flush with talented wide receivers.  We know Brandon Marshall and Eric Decker, though we didn’t see Decker in the game, but it goes farther than that.  Quincy Enunwa made two key catches on the drive when the first-team offense scored a touchdown.  His 69 yards of receiving set the Jets up for Bilal Powell to take it in from four yards out.

Charone Peake showed he just might be better than his seventh round draft selection.  His catch on Geno Smith‘s TD pass was an excellent play near the sideline.  Veteran Jeremy Ross got into the action with three catches of his own.

Sluggish on Defense

Typically, the defense starts out stronger than the offense.  For the Jets, it was the opposite.  The defense did a lot of bending, though it didn’t do as much breaking.  They came up big in the red zone, including the game-ending interception, but the Jaguars’ offense had quite a bit of success, outgaining the Jets 415 yards to 284 yards.

Old friend Chris Ivory ran over the Jets for 26 yards on six carries and the only Jacksonville TD.  Blake Bortles and Chad Henne combined to go 14-16 passing for 199 yards.  Aside from a couple of plays, the defense spent a good portion of the game on its heels.

Buster Skrine

Skrine needs to be in the slot.  Working on the outside is difficult, simply because he stands at 5’9″ tall.  Tall receivers will eat him alive, and that was on display in game one.  Skrine had all he could handle with the 6’3″ Allen Robinson and was unable to stop him.  The Jets need a player like Marcus Williams to step up and earn the starting spot on the opposite side of Darrelle Revis.

Lachlan Edwards

The Jets’ Australian-born punter looked solid in his debut.  He punted six times for an average of 41.5 yards per punt.  The hang time was even better.  The Jaguars’ punt return team managed a grand total of four return yards.  Thanks to Ryan Quigley, the Jets had difficultly winning the field position game in 2015.  Their new blood might just be on the road to correcting that problem.

Backup Quarterbacks

Both Geno Smith and Bryce Petty had solid moments in their respective 2016 debuts.  Geno started out with some accuracy problems but finished strong, including a pretty 17-yard touchdown pass to Charone Peake to end his night.  He went 8-14 for 79 yards and the one touchdown.  His decision-making showed signs of improvement.

Though he only went 7-14, Petty looked like a much-improved NFL quarterback.  His throws were strong and, for the most part, accurate.  His understanding of the offense appeared to be improved by leaps and bounds over his rookie season.  It’s going to be an interesting competition behind Ryan Fitzpatrick.

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Overall it wasn’t a bad start for the Jets.  There is definitely room to get better before they take the field against the Redskins on the 19th.