On Saturday night, the New York Jets sat most of the players who are already locked into spots on their 53-man roster — 32 in total.
That included both Aaron Rodgers and Tyrod Taylor, leaving the Jets with two quarterbacks fighting for, at best, a spot on the practice squad: Andrew Peasley, an undrafted rookie, and reigning UFL MVP Adrian Martinez. In a 15-12 victory over the Carolina Panthers, Peasley took the first half, Martinez took the second, and neither was particularly exciting.
Next week the Jets will close out the preseason against the Giants. Perhaps, like last year, Rodgers will play a series or two as a warm-up for the regular season, though, during his most recent press conference, he didn’t sound eager to do so: “Preseason is not what it used to be, it’s to see if young guys once the lights go on, and the pads go on, and the tackling happens, if they can show up or if they don’t,” Rodgers said. “So, what’s there to gain?”
The gains come for two kinds of players: 1) The ones fighting for roster spots, and 2) Young players who need reps.
THIS WILL MCDONALD SPIN MOVE 🤯 pic.twitter.com/HJh5NfWoO2
— New York Jets (@nyjets) August 18, 2024
The Jets don’t ultimately have a whole lot of roster spots to be won — this is the deepest roster they’ve had in years — but there are still enough that the second preseason game did matter for many. Here’s a stock report coming off Saturday night’s game…
Stock up: CB Qwan’Tez Stiggers
The fifth-round pick has been one of the biggest winners of the summer. He never played a down in college, but it seems his experience in the CFL has helped him — Stiggers is not intimidated by anyone. He opened Saturday’s game with a tackle for loss and also made a play in punt coverage. If he can contribute on special teams he’ll have a shot at an active roster spot on game days. The Jets are loaded (and deep) at cornerback, but Stiggers has a bright future.
GO DEEPER
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Stock down: QB Andrew Peasley and QB Adrian Martinez
Neither Peasley nor Martinez acquitted themselves especially well on Saturday. Peasley completed 7 of 11 passes for just 33 yards, though he at least did make some plays with his legs, scrambling for 25 yards on four carries. Martinez (7 of 17, 67 yards) had a brutal interception in the third quarter on a pass intended for wide receiver Tyler Harrell, picked off by safety Demani Richardson. The Jets will need a third quarterback for the practice squad as long as rookie Jordan Travis is out; Peasley and Martinez only have one more week to prove it should be them.
Stock up: DE Will McDonald
In this environment, against mostly backups, McDonald needed to show he was a level above his competition. That’s what he did on Saturday: McDonald used his signature spin move on right tackle Ricky Lee in the second quarter to get by him and bring down QB Jack Plummer for an easy sack. The Jets are trying to round out McDonald’s skillset so he’s not so reliant on the spin, but it’s surely going to get him some sacks this season.
GO DEEPER
Ugliness aside, the Jets need Haason Reddick — and Reddick needs the Jets
The 28-year-old has been one of the talks of training camp. Before the game, Jets coach Robert Saleh told a sideline reporter that McKinley is a “tenacious” player who “plays with unbelievable effort and strain.” The former first-round pick hasn’t played in a regular season game since 2022, but as of now he looks like a safe bet to land on the 53-man roster, especially as Haason Reddick’s holdout lingers. McKinley also had a QB hit in the fourth quarter that was negated by an offensive pass interference penalty.
Bad sign for Mitchell: He was getting reps in the second half with mostly offensive players who probably won’t wind up on the Jets’ 53-man roster. Carter Warren started Saturday’s game at left tackle while Olu Fashanu got his first game reps at right tackle with the starting offense. Kohl Levao and Chris Glaser got the starts at guard. Tyron Smith, Morgan Moses, Fashanu and Warren are all safe bets to make it. Mitchell is hoping the Jets will keep five tackles.
(Fashanu, by the way, seemed to hold his own at right tackle — which he didn’t play at Penn State and only started getting reps at the position for the first time this week. Per TruMedia, he allowed one pressure on 16 pass-blocking snaps, though he was called for a costly holding penalty that negated a long Isaiah Davis run.)
He’s shown some flashes in recent weeks but his performance has generally been a bit too inconsistent throughout camp. He had a bad drop on a pass from Martinez in the second half on Saturday. As of now, if Brownlee makes the team, he seems like a likely healthy scratch on game days to start the season.
GO DEEPER
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The undrafted rookie had a stellar Saturday as a returner, slicing and dicing the Panthers kick return unit for a 63-yard return to open the second half. He followed that up with 15- and 31-yard punt returns. Xavier Gipson is locked in as the Jets’ top returner, but they might’ve stumbled on a fallback option.
.@Bsteel80 TOOK OFF 💨💨💨
📺 #NYJvsCAR on CBS & @paramountplus pic.twitter.com/5OM20DDj4N
— New York Jets (@nyjets) August 18, 2024
Echols is not a first- or second-year player and is generally viewed as a key depth piece at cornerback, so it was curious that he played in Saturday’s game rather than getting the night off like many of his teammates. Echols plays a key role on special teams so he’s not going anywhere, but it was at least notable that he played 16 snaps. Stiggers looms on the depth chart.
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Stock up: OL Xavier Newman and OL Chris Glaser
Newman and Glaser have flip-flopped playing at guard and center with the backups the last two weeks. Both started on Saturday. The Jets lack depth on the interior and until (or unless) they add a veteran after roster cuts, one of these two has a shot at sticking around. Glaser recently got a shoutout from Rodgers, which doesn’t hurt.
Stock down: CB Jarrick Bernard-Converse
He’s been one of the surprises of the summer, standing out at a new position (converting from safety) both during practices and in last week’s preseason opener. He was battling with wide receiver Terrace Marshall Jr. on Saturday, and both were trading blows before Bernard-Converse left with a groin injury and was declared “doubtful” to return, which is never a good sign. Bernard-Converse is a safe bet to make the 53 but if the injury is serious that could throw a wrench into things.
Miscellaneous notes
• Wide receiver Irv Charles, a key special teamer, left Saturday’s game with a hip injury.
• Rookie running back Isaiah Davis got the first punt return rep of the game, gaining nine yards. He also built on a few solid practices with a nice running performance, though his best run was negated by Fashanu’s hold. Rookie Braelon Allen also gained 27 yards on eight carries, while Israel Abanikanda — fighting for a roster spot — had a 12-yard rush and finished with 29 yards on six carries.
• Undrafted rookie cornerback Shemar Bartholomew had a nice tackle for loss on a pass in the third quarter, bringing down running back Dillon Johnson.
• He didn’t record any stats but undrafted defensive end Braiden McGregor was winning a lot of his matchups as a pass rusher and nearly had a sack at one point in the third quarter. He stood out more than undrafted rookie defensive end Eric Watts, who was an early favorite to stick around based on his performance in practice.
(Top photo of Will McDonald: Jim Dedmon / USA Today)
