The Jets' second game of the preseason and of head coach Aaron Glenn's tenure as their first-year head coach went the way many preseason games go in the NFL. After a brand-building performance in their 30-10 win at Green Bay, the Jets came back to earth in a 31-12 loss at the Giants, and AG didn't see a lot in the game that made him a happy camper.
But there was a quiet yet perhaps significant development for the offense: The wide receiver backup battle has been joined. The Jets have been looking for the men to help WR room leader Garrett Wilson and QB Justin Fields maximize this unit's impact. And with the Giants game featuring lots of snaps for the second and third units, free agents Brandon Smith and Quentin Skinner and drafted rookie speedster Arian Smith all had some moments under the spotlight.
"You know what? Here's two guys that really stuck out for me," Glenn said. "I thought B-Smitty did a really good job, and he's done a good job in practice also. And Skinner really showed up. They're both big guys, they both go up and high-point the ball."
Justin Fields, who had an understated game in his two drives with the first offense, also noticed from the sideline some of the young sets of improving hands.
"Arian, I think he had a good day," Fields said. "Q [Skinner] had his first touchdown pass. Pritch [ Jamaal Pritchett] had a good day as well. Those are the guys that kind of stood out to me."
Going down the list, Skinner's fourth-quarter diving touchdown catch from rookie QB Brady Cook in the end zone may have only cut the Jets' deficit to 24-12, but the artfulness of the catch by Skinner after he slowly got to his knees following the catch will be shown a lot on sports shows and local TV in the next few days. All four of the catches by the undrafted FA from Kansas came in the final period, and his 48 receiving yards tied for the Jets' lead.
That yardage co-leader, on a team-leading five catches, was Brandon Smith, the first-year wideout from Iowa. He worked closely with first-year QB Adrian Martinez, who came in behind Fields at QB. Smith had four of his grabs in the second quarter, including a 20-yarder to start off his night, then a 17-yarder in the third frame to wrap up his production.
"One thing I've been trying to focus on is blocking," Smith said. "Everybody knows I can catch the ball. It's not like a question if I can catch the ball or not. But I want to keep working on blocking and special teams aspects."
Arian Smith, the fourth-rounder from Georgia, matched his two catches from the opener at Green Bay but more than doubled his 18-yard production vs. the Pack. His 23- and 16-yard receptions both came from Martinez, both converted third downs, and both were instrumental in what Glenn said was "a really good two-minute drive" from the Jets 5 to the Giants 13 before Nick Folk's second field goal trimmed the Jets deficit to 7-6 at the half.
And B-Smitty was happy to see A-Smitty overcome an earlier dropped pass and execute his late-first-half heroics.
"You know what you can bring to the table and you don't let a mistake sit there and make you think otherwise," Brandon Smith said. "I was just proud and happy for him to be able to get over that hump."
The entire group behind Wilson and veteran wideouts Allen Lazard, Josh Reynolds and Tyler Johnson, which also includes Malachi Corley, Ontaria Wilson, Dymere Miller and special-teams staples Xavier Gipson and Irvin Charles, are showing that maybe two or three of them can win jobs on the 53-man roster as they continue to push themselves and each other.
"There's a whole lot of competition involved," Brandon Smith said. "Every single guy we have in there has the capability to make plays and they have made plays, whether in games or practices. And we're a tight-knit group as well. We all root each other on and it's exciting to see."
The excitement — and tension — ratchets up even more with the Jets' final preseason game, this time as the MetLife home team, against Philadelphia on Friday, followed two weeks later by opening day at home against Pittsburgh.
"We've had a lot of young guys make plays in camp," Fields said. "I'm looking forward to getting back to work with them this week and keep seeing them make plays."
