Most of the Jets’ roster will experience something new Saturday when Gang Green faces the Giants.
The 20 rookies on the team will see live NFL game action for the first time in their careers in the Jets’ preseason opener. The team’s 22 second-year players will also play in their first preseason game after the NFL canceled last year’s exhibition slate due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The starters won’t see too much time – Robert Saleh said Zach Wilson and the others will play “about a quarter” – but any opportunity to learn and practice is important to the Jets’ young core. Players like Wilson, running back Michael Carter, linebacker Hamsah Nasirildeen and some of the rookie cornerbacks will have integral roles on the team this season.
“We are a very, very young football team,” Saleh said this week. “And they’ve got to be able to go through the process of pregame and prepping themselves mentally and getting in their own space and getting ready to play a football game and then going out there and playing a couple of drives.”
Saleh will get his first taste of the NFL as a head coach. It’s only a preseason game, but it’s still another chance for him to prepare.
“To me, this is a big deal,” he added. “These moments are priceless, especially for this team.”
A few rookies won’t get to play while they recover from injuries, though. Elijah Moore left Thursday’s practice with a quad injury, making him uncertain for the game. Left guard Alijah Vera-Tucker is dealing with a pectoral strain and is not expected to play.
