Preseason Game Recap: Jets Beat Packers 23-14

After a week of joint practices with the New York Jets, the Green Bay Packers fell short with a 23-14 loss in week two of preseason.  

The Packers won the coin toss and deferred, so the Jets were first to take the field and try and make something happen on Saturday. They rolled out their first-string offense, against what was primarily second and third sting guys for the Packers, and quickly found some rhythm.

Rookie quarterback Zach Wilson led the way for New York, connecting with wide receiver Corey Davis over the middle for a 24-yard pickup for a first down. Green Bay’s rookie cornerback Eric Stokes got beat badly on the play. However, Stokes channeled his inner goldfish and quickly forgot about the mishap. On a third down later in the drive, Stokes bounced back by breaking up a key pass play and forcing the Jets to settle for a 54-yard field goal and a 3-0 lead.

Jordan Love was inactive Saturday as a result of a strained throwing shoulder in the first preseason game, so Kurt Benkert got the start at quarterback for the Packers, and he didn’t disappoint. On Green Bay’s opening drive, Benkert and running back AJ Dillon took charge.  

The duo connected for 6 yards to open what would be a four-minute drive. Then, Dillon rushed for 9 yards and a first down, followed by another 5-yard pickup. Following back-to-back rushes from Dillon, Benkert showed off his stuff by making an impressive throw on the run to wide receiver Malik Taylor for a 23-yard gain. The officials initially ruled the catch out of bounce, but Packers head coach Matt LaFleur (with encouragement from Aaron Rodgers) challenged the ruling on the field and won.

From there, the Packers continued to make their way down the field. Dillon rushed for an 11-yard gain and a first down, and then picked up 3- and 6-yard catches consecutively to put the Packers in scoring position. Then, rookie running back Kylin Hill rushed for 12 yards and a touchdown to give Green Bay a 7-3 lead.

On their next offensive drives, both the Jets and Packers failed to make anything happen. For the Packers, on the defensive side, linebacker Krys Barnes came up with a key stop on 3^rd and 1 to force New York to punt. And, on the offensive side, tight end Jace Sternberger dropped a nice pass from Benkert on third down that would’ve been a first down.  

As time ticked away in the first quarter, the Wilson to Davis connection only improved for the Jets. Wilson found his favorite target for 14 yards and 27 yards on back-to-back plays to quickly put New York at Green Bay’s 16-yard line. Then, to open the second quarter, Wilson completed an 18-yard pass over the middle to tight end Tyler Kroft for a touchdown and the 10-7 lead. To make matters worse, it appeared there was a clear miscommunication from the Packers pre-snap that may have led to the scoring play.

Green Bay, however, was not fazed. They responded with the game’s most impressive touchdown drive, which stretched 10:19, 19 plays and 81 yards. After tripping on his offensive lineman’s foot on back-to-back plays, Benkert quickly bounced back on third down by throwing a laser to Taylor for a first down. Then, rookie wide receiver Amari Rodgers got into the mix for the Packers with a 9-yard gain on third down. And, in line with what LaFleur has said all preseason, the Packers weren’t afraid to go for it on 4^th and 2. Lucky for them, they got the first down, and more, after Benkert hit wide receiver Reggie Begelton on an 11-yard play. Benkert continued to heat up, then hitting Taylor on a 21-yard pass play to put the Packers at the Jets 14-yard line. With the help of a defensive holding call on third down, the Packers found themselves back in the end zone after Benkert lobbed one up to Sternberger for a 5-yard touchdown and the 14-10 lead.

The excitement from the Packers’ monstrous drive was short lived though. On the kickoff, Packers special teams laid a huge egg and allowed a 73-yard return that almost immediately put the Jets in scoring position. Barely a minute later, Wilson connected with Kroft again, this time for an 18-yard touchdown on the left side of the field to put the Jets up 17-14.

Green Bay and New York would each get another shot at putting points on the board before halftime, but both failed to make something happen.

Most of the action in this preseason matchup took place in the first half, but there were a few notable moments in the second half as well. Unfortunately for Green Bay, the negatives outweighed the positives in the latter half of week two of preseason. For the second week in a row, the Packers failed to score a single point in the second half.

On the first play of the second half, Packers running back Patrick Taylor fumbled and the Jets recovered it with great field position. However, Packers’ rookie TJ Slaton came up with a big play on second down and sacked Jet’s quarterback Mike White for a 7-yard loss. After that, New York couldn’t recover on third down and had to settle for a 46-yard field goal attempt. And, just as they were all day long, the attempt was good, and the Jets extended their lead to 20-14.

On their next drive, the Jets would eat up over four minutes on the clock, but, in the end, still had to settle for a field goal to extend their lead to 23-14.

Later in the third quarter, the Packers appeared to have finally gained momentum, but it didn’t last long after Benkert was intercepted on 1^st and 10 at the Jets 34. Luckily for Green Bay, New York struggled to take advantage of the turnover and was forced to punt.

The late third quarter punt resulted in a rare highlight for the Packers’ special teams unit, after Begelton had a solid return to the Green Bay 40 for 28 yards. It appeared that brought some life to Green Bay’s offense after Benkert connected with Rodgers on back-to-back 4- and 15-yard plays, but it wasn’t enough after the Packers failed to convert on fourth down, resulting in a turnover on downs.

The rest of the way, both teams struggled to find much of anything. Benkert was sacked shortly before he called it a day and then Packers quarterback Jake Dolegala was intercepted with just under two minutes left to lock in our final score of Jets 23 Packers 14.

 

What we learned: Malik Taylor is probably making the roster

Have a day, Malik Taylor. The gritty wide receiver surely made a statement for why he should make Green Bay’s final roster on Saturday. He was all over the place on offense, leading the team in receiving with 4 receptions for 66 yards (ESPN stats).

LaFleur has been open about how the Packers just need to fill the final few spots on their roster and Taylor surely made an argument for why one of those spots belongs to him. The final days of camp and the preseason game in Buffalo next week will be crucial for him to continue to ride this high.

I don’t know about you, but I’m excited to see how it all plays out.

 

What went right: Kylin Hill and the O-Line

For the second week in a row, rookie running back Kylin Hill looked like he was a steal for the Packers in this year’s draft. He supported the offense with solid play out of the backfield and with pass catching. He finished the day with 7 carries for 29 yards and a touchdown and 2 receptions for 11 yards (ESPN stats).

Unlike last week, Hill did get some support from the Packers’ o-line in week two of preseason. I thought the o-line looked lightyears better than last week, especially with solid play from Yosh Nijman.

 

What went wrong: Special teams (again) and second half offense (again)

For the second week in a row, special teams and the second half offense were sour spots for Green Bay. Special teams truly struggled across the board, with the exception of that nice return from Begelton in the third quarter. In addition to giving up significant yardage on punt and kick returns, punter JK Scott didn’t look great either, even punting for just 21 yards one time in the second half.

For the Packers’ second half offense, it was just a myriad of mishaps. Here is how the second half panned out for Green Bay:

1. Fumble
2. Punt (21-yarder)
3. Interception
4. Turnover on Downs
5. Punt
6. Interception  

I don’t think I need to say much more.

 

Offensive MVPs: Kurt Benkert

Kurt Benkert surely won over a lot more Packers fan on Saturday. Although he would be the third string quarterback for Green Bay, he’s still been a huge fan favorite this off/preseason and seems to be really well liked by the Packers players and staff.

With Love out this week, this was a huge opportunity for Benkert to try and prove why he deserves to be with the Packers, and he really took advantage.

He finished the day 18/25 for 151 yards, 1 touchdown and 1 interception (ESPN stats). Similar to Taylor, I really am invested in how this plays out for Benkert and the Packers at the end of preseason.

 

Defensive MVP: TJ Slaton

To be quite honest, no one in particular had a stand-out day on the Packers defense, but it was great to see rookie defensive tackle TJ Slaton get involved and get a sack on Saturday. He finished the day toward the top of the box score for the Packers with 4 total tackles, 3 of which were solo and his 1 sack for -7 yards (ESPN stats).

Although he still has work to do, Slaton is surely someone the Packers should be excited about on defense.  

 

Up next, the Green Bay Packers travel to Highmark Stadium for their final preseason game against the Buffalo Bills. Kickoff is set for Saturday, August 28 at 1:00 p.m. EST.