Aug 24, 2024; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; New York Jets cornerback Shemar Bartholomew (40) breaks up a pass intended for New York Giants wide receiver Miles Boykin (81) during the second half at MetLife Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports
Outside of a long touchdown run from Izzy Abanikanda, the Jets defense provided all of the fireworks on Saturday night to close out the preseason.
The Jets seemingly sent wave after wave of pass rushers against the Giants as Gang Green racked up eight sacks. Veteran Takkarist McKinley led the way with 2.5 sacks but a pair of undrafted rookies stepped up as well.
Edge rusher Braiden McGregor had two of his own while defensive tackle Leonard Taylor had a sack and a half. Tanzel Smart added another while linebacker Zaire Barnes and rookie Eric Watts each had a half.
The Jets will have plenty of difficult decisions to make in getting down to 53 players with so much talent in the trenches.
Robert Saleh also had to enjoy watching some of his young cornerbacks providing sticky coverage all night long, limiting Tommy DeVito to just 103 yards on 14 of 27 passing.
The Jets defense did get beat up on the ground early on as the Giants churned out 54 yards on the ground in the first quarter alone.
As lethargic as the Jets offense was, wide receiver Brandon Smith had another big catch, hauling in a 39-yard pass from Andrew Peasley on a play that he appeared to go out of bounds on. A referee review determined Smith managed to get both feet down on the circus catch.
With the win, the Jets wrap up the preseason 3-0 before trimming the roster to 53 and getting ready for the San Francisco 49ers to kick off their season on Monday Night Football.