Usually in the final preseason game there aren’t really a lot of exciting stuff because it’s the game where the starters don’t play and the young guys have one last crack at it to impress the coaches before they have to cut the roster down to 53 on Saturday. For us however, it's the interstate of green bowl being that we cover both the Jets and the eagles we find ways to make this game intriguing (not that the Jets need any help in that department).
Earlier this week, the New York Jets announced that veteran quarterback Josh McCown will be the opening day starter against the Buffalo Bills. Which really knocked the wind out of us when we found out that he was going to start the final preseason game against the eagles (pun intended). I can understand that Head Coach Todd Bowles wanted to get him some reps but that almost ended in disaster because McCown took a shot to the chest from eagles linebacker Joe Walker after he completed a 20-yard pass to Austin Seferian-Jenkins. He went down on is knee to catch his breath which gave enough time for Christian Hackenberg to warm up. He ended up finishing the day with 57 yards and going 6 for 8 that capped off with a 28 yard field goal from Catanzaro. Hackenberg who struggled throughout the preseason went 10 for 22 with 105 yards and a TD.
Although there was some hiccups in this game that kept us holding our breaths, there was a couple of Jets players who really shined today. For example: rookie running back Elijah Mcguire totaled three carries for 56 yards, including a 34 yard burst that put them in the red zone. Also, recently signed DE Kony Ealy forced a strip sack on third stringer quarterback Matt McGloin in the second quarter and rookie Patrick Gamble recovered the ball setting the Jets up in the Eagles territory. Jets ended up winning the turnover battle 2-1.
Overall, the Jets young players showed that they can play in this league and proved that they belonged on this team making it very hard for these coaches to cut these players. I’m excited to see these young players perform on the big stage even though the Jets aren’t expecting to have a spectacular season.