The Jets concluded their week by facing the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at MetLife Stadium on Friday night in their first preseason game of the year. The veterans saw limited action, paving the way for the young members of the Green & White to play valuable minutes.
Here's three players who stood out:
QB Cade Klubnik
Rookie QB Cade Klubnik led the offense to two scoring drives in his NFL debut. On Thursday, head coach Aaron Glenn told him he would be making the start with Geno Smith dealing with a sore ankle.
Klubnik, who became only the third rookie QB in Jets history to start a preseason opener, completed 5-of-7 passes for 56 yards, connecting twice with TE Mason Taylor and WR Garrett Wilson, and once to WR Omar Cooper Jr.
"Although I'm a young player, I think that I'm poised," Klubnik said. "We put some drives together, that was fun and, you know, I still made some mistakes out there. Being able to learn from those and respond from those quickly and have my teammates kind of have my back whenever those did happen, that was good to see."
Glenn was impressed with how he operated, considering Klubnik hadn't had many reps with the first-team offense prior to kickoff. Klubnik completed his first three passes before missing a short connection on the left side.
For his first game experience, Klubnik demonstrated his ability to command the offense with OC Frank Reich calling the plays in his ear — he said the communication was "smooth." Bailey Zappe and Brady Cook also saw game action and Glenn said the competition for the backup role is still ongoing, but this was definitely a good step for the rookie.
CB Mory Bamba
Nobody defended more passes than Mory Bamba on Friday night. His 4 PDs were the most recorded by a single player across both teams.
"I think some of the younger DBs actually showed up and he's the one that really stands out," Glenn said. "And it's not just what he did on defense, I mean he did some good plays on special teams, too. There were a couple mistakes that he had, and I've got to make sure that I say that, but for the most part, I thought he showed off tonight."
In the second quarter the Buccaneers looked to WR Ted Hurst III in the end zone, but Bamba broke the ball out from his grasp to prevent the touchdown. Tampa Bay was held to a field goal.
"It's a game of imperfect, but the biggest thing is I just keep having that next play mentality and just play loose," Bamba said about what was clicking for him. "When you're out there overthinking, you're going to end up messing up anyway. I just allow myself to play loose and stay loose out there."
Bamba signed with the Jets as an undrafted free agent out of BYU. Before he played football in college, he competed in Division III track and field as a hurdler and triple jumper.
WR Omar Cooper Jr.
Omar Cooper Jr. said he's going to remember the route of his first NFL catch. After the game he broke down the play.
"It was just like a slow 5-yard out roll out pass, and I was the first read and just seeing that the corner bailed and went with the other receiver, I knew I had the leverage on the guy that was guarding me, so I knew I was going to get the ball," Cooper said. "But just making sure that I look the ball in and catch it, because you know, didn't want the nerves to get in or anything, so I just had to make sure I was ready for the opportunity."
In his Jets debut, Cooper had 2 catches on 3 targets: the 5-yard grab thrown by Cade Klubnik — and a 26-yard pickup, the longest play made by any receiver Friday night, thrown by Bailey Zappe.
That second reception showed some of Cooper's yards after the catch capability. Zappe targeted him 18 yards down the right side, and Cooper was able to get 8 yards farther with the ball in his hands.
"It felt amazing, it's just something you always dreamed of as a kid," Cooper said about playing in his first game. "I'm just excited I had that opportunity."
