NY Jets: The advantage of facing Jayden Daniels in the preseason (2024)

By Rivka Boord

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Many of the New York Jets’ (and all NFL teams’) preseason games feature their defense going up against backup quarterbacks. However, for the second consecutive season, they have the advantage of facing a rookie starter in their first preseason game. Washington Commanders head coach Dan Quinn said that No. 2 overall pick Jayden Daniels will play against the Jets.

Hardly a surprise, but Commanders HC Dan Quinn said No. 2 overall pick Jayden Daniels will play in Washington’s first preseason game vs. the Jets. pic.twitter.com/ebMsglbbFP

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) August 4, 2024

How long Daniels plays remains to be seen. In 2023, No. 1 overall pick Bryce Young played three drives, dropping back seven times and attempting six passes. Young likely would have been out earlier if the offense had advanced further downfield.

It’s important not to read too much into preseason games. Still, going up against Daniels, both for the first-team defense in the joint practice and for everyone else, could provide valuable experience for the Jets defenders who see action against him.

In particular, Daniels’ rushing ability is a challenge for the Jets’ defense. Excluding sack yardage, Daniels rushed for 1,250 yards in 2023, leading all FBS quarterbacks.

The Jets’ aggressive mindset sometimes causes them to struggle against running quarterbacks. Their tendency to play man coverage and run stunts upfront can lead to open running lanes. Here are a few plays showing how the Jets’ lack of discipline or mistakes upfront can lead to big quarterback runs.

The Jets won’t play a ton of so-called “running” quarterbacks in 2024. However, the hardest one is also one they play twice in Josh Allen. Other big threats with their legs include Kyler Murray, Anthony Richardson, and Russell Wilson (or Justin Fields, who would be a much bigger threat). But we’ve seen Mac Jones take off against the Jets occasionally when the opportunity presents itself. Trevor Lawrence and Jacoby Brissett are unafraid to take off.

The truth is that the Jets weren’t all that bad statistically against quarterback runs in 2023. Not including quarterback sneaks (≤1 yard to go), the Jets’ defense ranked ninth in defensive success rate (51.9%) and 17th in EPA per rush (0.187) allowed on quarterback runs.

Still, the plays above show how it was still an issue at times even in 2023. Furthermore, in 2022, they ranked 19th in success rate (43.8%) and 27th in EPA per rush (0.421) on those same runs.

Facing Daniels in the preseason game will give the Jets’ defense a live look at trying to prevent scrambles. Of course, their first-team defense likely won’t play, but for players like Micheal Clemons, Will McDonald, Solomon Thomas, and Leki Fotu, it will be a valuable experience. The coaching staff will also be able to look at the tape and work out the issues before the Jets face off against quarterbacks like Allen, Murray, and Richardson in the regular season.

I still wouldn’t put too much stock into anything that happens when Daniels is in the preseason game. The Jets always play a vanilla Cover 3 defense on every play in the preseason, making results mostly irrelevant. But the fact that defenders will need to account for quarterback runs could be a good teaching point.

Rivka Boord

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