The “Snoopy Bowl” is almost here. Tonight, Geno Smith, Eric Decker, and the rest of our New York Jets take on their roommates, Eli Manning and the New York Giants. It’s the third preseason game, so it is the one that most resembles a regular season game, as the starters play into the third quarter.And although it's merely a preseason game, Gang Green and their fans always come in aggressive and physical, desperately trying to knock Big Blue off the back pages. And after a week in which shots were taken from both sides of the fence, this game promises to be no different than any of their previous battles.
Despite the obvious tensions between the two teams and their desire to "win New York," the reality for the Giants is that they have bigger fish to fry at the moment. They have only two remaining preseason games to find some level of consistency and success with their first-team offense or face the very difficult reality of heading into the regular season completely out of sync
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What to Watch For:
GENO SMITH: Rex Ryan said he is not ready to announce the week one starter yet. He hinted that he might know who it is, but just isn’t ready to announce it. Whether we believe him, or how much we believe, is up for debate. Until the announcement is made, Geno will be someone to watch during the preseason. We really want to see him generate a succession of good drives with the first team. Cohesion is something we finally need to get going with the first team.
Last Chance for Offense – Big Blue's first-team offense is looking ahead to two quarters of football that will ultimately define them heading into the regular season. With snaps likely to be severely limited next week against the New England Patriots, this will be it for quarterback Eli Manning & Co. Something has to go right. Something has to work. It's no longer a matter if and not when, but rather now or never. From the offensive line to the receivers and the quarterback to the running backs, the Giants must find something positive to build off of.
WIDE RECEIVERS: The Jets have a lot of bodies at the position, but nobody really stepping up to start along with Eric Decker. Jeremy Kerley is best suited in the slot, so somebody needs to step up and be the “guy” on the outside. Could it be David Nelson? Stephen Hill? Someone else? It would be nice to start seeing someone emerge tomorrow night.
First-Team Defensive Line – The first-team defensive line has been nothing to write home about this preseason, but with snaps being limited to this point, a full half to adjust to what the opposing offense is doing may allow us a bit more insight into what we can expected from Jason Pierre-Paul & Co. After all, he says this game will be used to "make a statement.
ANTONIO ALLEN: As the days go by, the more and more I think that Allen is going to be a key to the New York Jets’ success. I don’t see an answer coming from the cut downs from other teams. Allen’s ability to play cornerback is going to be huge. After a good performance against the Bengals, we need to see him back it up with another good game against the Giants tomorrow.
Play Calling – The Giants said a week ago that they had installed their full offense and would put it on display against the Indianapolis Colts, but that didn't quite work out the way they had planned. And although the Giants did run a few new plays and lineup in a few new formations, it was anything but fully installed. This week promises to be different on both offense and defense, as Ben McAdoo and Perry Fewell will each be given two full quarters to test the entirety of their respective systems.
CALVIN PRYOR: This guy is quickly becoming my favorite member of the New York Jets. I know he only played in one game, but it was a fun one. He threw the body around all game. I want to see him do it again tomorrow, and show the world that he is here to stay.
Physical Play – As noted previously, the Jets hate the Giants and their relentless chatter has, in turn, made the Giants hate the Jets. Accordingly, Friday's "Snoopy Bowl" will have a feel to it much more like the playoffs than the preseason. Subsequently, play on the field is going to be very physical — Rex Ryan even implied his team would have a target on the back of Andre Williams. Meanwhile, Jason Pierre-Paul says they're looking at this game as an opportunity to make a statement.
RYAN QUIGLEY/JACOB SCHUM Is anyone going to step up and earn the job as Jets’ punter. Nobody has done it so far, and it doesn’t seem like John Idzik is jumping on the phone to get Zoltan Mesko. It will be one of these two guys, which one will win?
So, who are you watching tonight’s game?
