Preseason games are supposed to be where teams can simulate real games and test themselves after a summer of practices and training camp.
For the Jets, after an impressive performance in their preseason opener, they were simply outmatched against the Giants on Saturday night at MetLife Stadium. After being down just 7-6 at halftime, the Giants put up 24 points in the second half to come away with a 31-12 victory.
But it's not just the loss that has first-year head coach Aaron Glenn miffed; it's how the Jets looked. And to the former Jet, the team played subpar.
"When you look at the overall game, it wasn't good enough at all. That’s no surprise," Glenn said in his opening statement after the loss. "In all levels, I thought we were sloppy, undisciplined. When I say undisciplined, I talk about some of the penalties that we had… but overall, we got to play much better."
The Jets had seven penalties that accounted for 65 yards on Saturday, a week after they committed 10 penalties — including three unnecessary roughing violations — in the opener.
In addition to the penalties, the offense — especially the starters — was not good.
Justin Fields completed his first throw and that was it in the air, as he went 1 of 5 for four yards. He also ran once for five yards in his two and only drives of the game. It wasn't all Fields, though, as a high snap and QB pressure from the Giants' defense contributed to two misses. Garrett Wilson was targeted just three times and Fields couldn't get it to him.
"I think it has to be better," Fields said of his performance. "It wasn't up to our standard."
"That’s the beauty of this game because it always teaches you lessons," Glenn said. "One week, man, you can be riding high because things are going extremely well. And then the next week, it can put you on your a–. The thing about it, if you want to be a winning team, you always have to do everything you can to stay at that level of always keeping things above board, and we didn’t do that today."
There were some bright spots. The Jets ran the ball well, amassing 141 yards on 33 carries — Braelon Allen doing the most damage on his seven carries for 34 yards. And the defense, while susceptible to the big play, especially in the second half, came up with two interceptions, one off of Russell Wilson.
But that's where the praising of the positives ended with Glenn. When asked about the first-team offense's struggles, Glenn put it on all of his players and promised it will be better.
"Overall, in general, we weren't good enough. I don't care if it was the starting offense, I don't care if it was the second-team offense, the third-team offense. I’m going to say, overall, it wasn’t good enough," he said. "I thought we ran the ball fairly well, but overall, I thought it was sloppy. Too many dropped passes, our passing game has to be better. The guys know that, and it will be better. Again, we just have to go back to work. That’s what next week is going to be about."
The Jets, now 1-1 in the preseason, will have one more tune-up before the start of the regular season. It won't get much better as they welcome the defending Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles next Friday.
Will the starters play again? Fields says it's the coach's decision, and from the results of Saturday's game, it's likely the first-team offense may need more reps but Glenn is confident this group can play at a higher level.
"I think it's up and down. There's been a lot of ups in camp that I really liked. Today was not one of those days, which was obvious," Glenn said of the offense's performance this summer. "I still have a lot of confidence in what those guys can do because they've shown it to me. Once you show it, you can continue to do it. We just have to go back to work next week, hone in on those areas where we have to be better at."
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