The Jets starting defense did not play poorly but they gave up one huge play \u2014 an 80-yard bomb from Russell Wilson to Beaux Collins. <\/p>\n
The play showed some sloppiness from the secondary with Collins first beating cornerback Qwan\u2019tez Stiggers, then safety Andre Cisco.<\/p>\n
The secondary has some questions for the Jets. <\/p>\n
Sauce Gardner did not play Saturday because of calf soreness.<\/p>\n
It does not sound serious, but it\u2019s always a concern when the best player on the team is injured. <\/p>\n
Stiggers played in Gardner\u2019s place and did have an interception, but he also gave up some big throws.<\/p>\n
Brandon Stephens has played well in camp and made another nice play Saturday to break up a Wilson pass.<\/p>\n
The biggest issue could be safety. <\/p>\n
Beaux Collins beats safety Andre Cisco and catches an 80-yard touchdown pass from Russell Wilson during the first half of the Giants\u2019 31-12 preseason blowout win over the Jets on Aug. 16, 2025. Getty Images<\/p>\n
The Jaguars were happy to let Cisco walk in free agency, which makes you wonder. <\/p>\n
Tony Adams had issues last season with the Jets and was benched. <\/p>\n
Rookie Malachi Moore has promise but does not look ready to play immediately.<\/p>\n
Giants running back Dante Miller eludes Malachi Moore\u2019s tackle attempt during the Jets\u2019 preseason loss. Rich Barnes-Imagn Images<\/p>\n
The Jets defense was missing some key pieces with Gardner, Will McDonald IV (knee) and Quinnen Williams (calf) all out Saturday. <\/p>\n
It showed how thin their depth is, which could be an issue.<\/p>\n
Rookie right tackle Armand Membou played OK in his three series but did surrender one pressure to Kayvon Thibodeaux that resulted in Justin Fields rushing a pass. <\/p>\n
The Jets know Membou needs seasoning. <\/p>\n
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That\u2019s why he played one more series than the rest of the starters. <\/p>\n
Membou had some struggles during the joint practices this week but played better Saturday night. Membou will be tested quickly with T.J. Watt looming for the Steelers in Week 1.<\/p>\n
The receivers who are battling for roster spots and bigger roles in the offense had mediocre nights.<\/p>\n
Rookie Arian Smith had one clear drop and two other plays where he could have made the catch but did not. He rebounded to have two big catches. <\/p>\n
Receiver Arian Smith can\u2019t come up with the catch during the Jets\u2019 preseason loss to the Giants. AP<\/p>\n
Smith is going to make the team, but the idea that he can have a major role seems premature.<\/p>\n
Brandon Smith, who has had a strong training camp, had more catches (five) than any other receiver, but most were of the short variety. <\/p>\n
Jamaal Pritchett had two catches for 10 yards and had a drop. <\/p>\n
Xavier Gipson exited in the first half with a shoulder injury. Quentin Skinner made a diving touchdown catch in the fourth quarter.<\/p>\n
Receiver Xavier Gipson left the game with a shoulder injury during the Jets\u2019 preseason blowout loss to the Giants. Bill Kostroun \/ New York Post<\/p>\n
All of it leaves the Jets with some tough decisions next week on cutdown day and in plotting who will have roles in the offense.<\/p>\n
One player who strengthened his case for a roster spot is running back\/kick returner Kene Nwangwu. <\/p>\n
He had a nice kick return to start the game for 38 yards. <\/p>\n
He later starred in punt coverage, batting a ball before it crossed the goal line to pin the Giants inside their 10. <\/p>\n
Nwangwu\u2019s value is as a returner, but he also saw a lot of time at running back with Isaiah Davis out of the game because of a sprained ankle. <\/p>\n
He carried the ball six times for 31 yards and has shown he should make the Jets feel comfortable carrying him as a fourth running back.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Jets starting defense did not play poorly but they gave up one huge play \u2014 an 80-yard…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":294842,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2051],"tags":[5561,7,226,1917,255,2321,2097,6,9],"class_list":{"0":"post-294841","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-new-york-jets","8":"tag-ahmad-sauce-gardner","9":"tag-football","10":"tag-jets","11":"tag-new-york","12":"tag-new-york-jets","13":"tag-newyork","14":"tag-newyorkjets","15":"tag-nfl","16":"tag-sports"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/294841","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=294841"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/294841\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/294842"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=294841"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=294841"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=294841"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}