For the first time in months, there will be a football game on national television. When the New York Jets and Cleveland Browns take the field at the Tom Benson Hall-of-Fame stadium, they’ll do so to signal the start of the 2023 preseason, and the beginning of competitive action.
New York has certainly had a busy offseason. The addition of Aaron Rodgers has reinvigorated the fanbase while improvements at key positions have the Jets thinking of more than simply ending a decade-long playoff drought.
That journey starts Thursday night against a Browns team that underachieved last year due to the controversy surrounding DeShaun Watson’s suspension. Now, with a full offseason together, Cleveland believes themselves to be a true contender in the AFC North race.
Of course, neither the team’s Week 1 starters are expected to play Thursday night. But that doesn’t mean there isn’t plenty of important things to watch for throughout the game.
We have five of the biggest keys here:
How does Mekhi Becton look in his return to game action?
Becton is returning to game action for the first time in a little over two years. How he looks in the 20-25 plays he’s expected to get will determine what the Jets see in him for the future. If he can play effectively the whole game, I wouldn’t be surprised to see him begin taking reps with the first team at left or even right tackle.
The former first-round pick is getting stronger by the practice, but a lot will be told on Thursday night if he can ever get back to his rookie-year form.
Who wins the QB3 battle?
Rodgers is the franchise quarterback. Zach Wilson will be his backup. But thanks to the San Francisco 49ers, the Jets now need to have a third quarterback on the roster that won’t be on the 53-man roster. The reserve player will be important for New York this season especially if one of the two top guys on the depth chart gets hurt. Tim Boyle and Chris Streveler have both had their moments in practice, but whoever performs better in the games ahead will have their guarantee of being on the final roster. The other will probably be cut.
Can Jason Brownlee continue his dominant training camp?
The most underrated draft acquisition for New York has been an undrafted free agent from Southern Mississippi this year. Brownlee has turned heads in major ways and has even begun to get first-team reps in practice while New York gets healthier at the position. Is that something that can continue into games? If Brownlee continues to play at a high level, his spot on the 53-man roster is all but guaranteed at this point.
Who is the surprise standout?
In 1995, an unknown running back for Denver made a bone-crushing hit on special teams that turned heads so much that the Broncos made him their lead back as a sixth-round pick. That running back was Hall-of-Famer Terrell Davis.
Now this isn’t to say that a member fighting for their NFL lives for the Jets is a Hall-of-Fame player. It does show, however, how important the preseason is for over half of the roster for most organizations. Who will be the standout in Thursday’s game that catches the eye of the Jets’ coaching staff or other scouts across the rest of the league? It’s always fun to speculate that, but as long as Brownlee’s spot remains up in the air, he’s still the favorite to stand out in those moments.
Is the Jets’ OL struggles due to their dominant DL, or are they just bad?
The worst unkept secret through two weeks of Jets training camp is that their offensive line has not played up to par to this point. Whether that is because New York’s defensive line is expected to be a top unit this year, or that they are just bad will be determined on Thursday. Billy Turner, Max Mitchell, and Wes Schweitzer have all taken reps with the first team to this point and all are expected to start on Thursday night.
How they look will be extremely important. If they can hold their own, it shows that the struggles in practice are no more than just going up against a great unit. If they struggle though, don’t be surprised if the team looks to add another depth piece along the offensive line from other teams.
Either way, a lot is riding on Thursday’s “meaningless” preseason game.
