The Rex Ryan era officially began last night when the New York Jets took on the Saint Louis Rams in the first preseason game of 2009. Despite losing the game 23-20, the Gang Green played well and showed us plenty to look forward to both on defense and offense. The defense looked much more aggressive than in recent years, utilizing various blitzes and schemes that were unleashed from the get go.
QB Mark Sanchez made his NFL debut with a bang, going 3 of 4 for 88 yards. On his first NFL play from scrimmage Sanchez threw a 48-yard pass to WR David Clowney, who later in the game caught another deep ball - 50 yards from QB Erik Ainge for a touchdown. Sanchez and Clowney were among several players whose stock went up following the yesterday's loss.
On the rise:
QB Mark Sanchez - 3 of 4 for 88 yards, 0 TD, 0 INT. In his short stint last night Sanchez showed plenty of poise and ability to take a clear step ahead of QB Kellen Clemens.
WR David Clowney - Mr. Preseason (or is it Mr. Twitter?) is having a great preseason again. He was thrown to 4 times and caught 3 of those passes for a total of 102 yards, 1 TD. Can Clowney be #2 receiver on this team? He sure has the speed and also showed pretty good hands last night.
TE Dustin Keller - had 3 passes thrown to him and caught them all for 52 yards. Don't be surprised if Keller is the leading receiver on the team this season.
CB Drew Coleman - made quite a few plays on defense, including a nice open field tackle and a couple of broken up passes.
Falling down:
LB Vernon Gholston - despite raving words from Ryan in training camp, Gholston once again disappointed. At times he looked lost on the field. He saw plenty of playing time but ended up with only 1 tackle.
WR Paul Raymond - touched the ball once in the entire game and fumbled. I am not sure if he had any chance to make the team to begin with, but this chance should now be gone.
CB Dwight Lowery - had a horrible game as well. He was beaten quite a few times by the Rams' receivers, including a 50-yard catch in the second quarter. Lowery was also called for a pass interference on that play. He also fumbled two punts.
Anyone else who you think had a good or bad game? Share your opinion...