A tie! Preseason doesn’t matter, of course, but the Eagles ended up with a tie instead of cruising to a victory. This was not an overly encouraging preseason for Eagles fans, though it is worth noting that most of the starters didn’t play very much in any of the games. These were mostly reserves and roster bubble players. Still, this was another gross game, when all was said and done.
Michael Jacquet forced and recovered a fumble and returned it for a touchdown with under two minutes to go in the game. If he goes down or steps out of bounds, the Eagles would have been able to kneel a few times and end the game. But by returning the fumble for a touchdown, the Jets got the ball back. And somehow, they connected on a Hail Mary and a two-point conversion to battle back for a tie.
Now, let’s get to my top instant observations.
Eagles at Jets Instant Observations
The MetLife Stadium turf was a mess
A couple of hours before this game was scheduled to start, it looked like we might not even have a game. With heavy rain pouring down in North Jersey, the MetLife Stadium turf starting to have some…issues. The turf started bubbling and “pitching mounds,” apparently as the result of air beneath the turf itself. But it all got sorted out and the game was played, although it was delayed for approximately 30 minutes.
No starters
Most of the starters did not play tonight. This wasn’t a surprise, especially once we saw the weather forecast. Some thought Jalen Hurts should play after missing last week’s game, but Nick Sirianni and this coaching staff clearly value the joint practices during the week more than the actual preseason games. A few projected starters such as Jalen Reagor played in the game, but most got the night off.
This was a strange preseason. With only three games instead of the usual four, it was clear that teams were approaching things differently than how they have in the past. Most participated in multiple joint practices with other teams throughout training camp, and leaning more on those than the preseason itself was a common strategy. I think we will see more of that going forward.
Joe Flacco looked MUCH better
Contrary to what some fans think, there is no quarterback competition in Philadelphia. Jalen Hurts is starting, and that’s why Sirianni chose to not even dress him on Friday. Flacco did not play particularly well against the Patriots, but he bounced back with a nice performance tonight. Again, no competition. Just noting that Flacco looked much better, which feels important as the veteran presence behind Hurts.
Kenny Gainwell is a dude
Kenny Gainwell played during the first half and was very impressive. He was a natural pass-catcher, which many already knew. But he also showed great vision, patience, and quickness in the running game. He rushed five times for 32 yards (6.4 YPC) and a touchdown and caught all four of his targets for 27 yards. If he can stay healthy, he is going to be a real weapon for this Eagles offense this season. Boston Scott also played well. Are the Eagles keeping four running backs: Miles Sanders, Jordan Howard, Boston Scott, and Kenny Gainwell? That is certainly how it feels right now.
The “defense” struggles but forces turnovers
I put “defense” in quotes here because we haven’t seen most of the starters throughout the preseason. These have been role players, reserves, and players on the bubble trying to make the roster. This also isn’t, you hope, what we will see from defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon during the regular season. This is a basic, vanilla version of his defense as the Eagles continue to play things close to the vest. The defense has struggled during the preseason, but they did manage to force a couple of big turnovers tonight. Gannon has emphasized turnovers in practice, and that should be music to the ears of Eagles fans after several years of Jim Schwartz essentially saying he doesn’t care about them.
J.J. Arcega-Whiteside vs. Travis Fulgham
J.J. Arcega-Whiteside caught a touchdown pass! And an impressive one at that. He made a contested catch, broke a tackle, and then jogged into the end zone for a 42-yard touchdown. He finished with two catches for 57 yards and a touchdown. Travis Fulgham didn’t seem to play much in the first half and caught one of his two targets for 18 yards. He also lost a fumble that ended up rolling out of the back of the end zone after that only reception. It is hard to know exactly what the coaching staff and front office are thinking at this point, but it would not be surprising to see Fulgham cut or traded in the coming days.
Elijah Holyfield
We have to preface this by saying that Elijah Holyfield has virtually no shot of making this roster. But he was impressive tonight. He showed more quickness than I remembered seeing in the past, and he was patient with his blocks and vision. Good for him. He has been lingering on the roster and practice squad for a while now, and he put some good tape out there today.
Michael Jacquet is going to get lectured about game situations
Again, this game ended in a tie. And again, it’s preseason. It doesn’t matter even a little bit. But players should treat it like a real game and practice actual game situations. For that season, Michael Jacquet is probably going to get an earful either tonight or tomorrow at some point. With under two minutes left, he made a great play to force and recover a fumble, and then he returned the fumble for a touchdown.
There’s only one problem. By scoring the touchdown with a one-point lead, Jacquet ensured the Jets would get the ball back with a chance to tie. If he just went down or stepped out of bounds, the Eagles could have run out the clock. If this were a regular season game, he would be in some trouble. But it’s just the preseason, so he’ll likely just get a lecture.
What did you see tonight? Reach out on Twitter and let us know.
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Mike Maher is the editor and publisher of The Birds Blitz and Juiced Ball Era. Follow him on Twitter @mikeMaher and @TheBirdsBlitz and check out his Eagles news archive for all of his latest stories about the Eagles and the NFL.
Image caption: “MetLife Stadium, East Rutherford, NJ” by MattBritt00 is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
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