Rex Ryan knows how Jets fans feel.
The Jets coach is anxious to see his team on the field Thursday night, just as the fans are. After a surprising 8-8 season in 2013, the Jets feel like they have improved on offense and remain solid on defense. When they take the MetLife Stadium field Thursday to face the Colts in the preseason opener, we’ll get our first glimpse at how the changes look.
“I’m excited about it just like, shoot, no different than our fans,” Ryan said. “I know our fans are going to be excited about it. Let’s see where this team is at. Let’s see how [Eric] Decker fits in, let’s see how this defense looks. So, I’m excited to watch us play against somebody else.”
The Jets have been banging heads with each other for the last two weeks at training camp in Cortland. After a short walk-through Wednesday, they made the trip south to New Jersey and now they take the field for the first time Thursday night.
“I’m looking forward to playing against a different opponent,” quarterback Michael Vick said. “I’ve been [playing against] our defense every day. It’s been a great camp [and] been rough though going against those guys. But hey, it feels good to put the pads on against somebody else.”
All eyes will be on Vick and Geno Smith. As usual, the Jets do not have a drama-free quarterback situation. Smith will start and probably play the entire first quarter, maybe into the second. Vick will relieve him and get one series with the starting offense before playing with the second team.
Vick said he will go all out.
“The one thing you don’t want to do is not take a rigorous approach and [you need to] try and go out there and accomplish something,” Vick said. “When you try just get through it, man, bad things always tend to happen. For me, it’s always been an injury. So, I think right now [let’s] just continue to improve on what we built, the foundation that we are trying to lay and going out there trying to be effective and be productive.”
The quarterbacks won’t be the only areas of attraction, though. The Jets added Decker at wide receiver and Chris Johnson at running back to bolster an offense that finished 25th in the league last season. Decker returns to the field where he lost the Super Bowl in February with the Broncos. How will he look without Peyton Manning? Will Johnson show his trademark speed?
The Jets listed three running backs as starters on their initial depth chart — Johnson, Chris Ivory and Bilal Powell. Powell has a hamstring injury and is not expected to play. But this will be our first glimpse of how the Jets will divide up carries between Johnson and Ivory.
“I definitely think it’s going to be the committee approach when you have Chris Ivory and Chris Johnson and Bilal Powell, I would think that’s a pretty safe bet,” Ryan said of the philosophy for the season. “[It’s] different than when we were in 2009, when Thomas [Jones] clearly ended up being the guy that took the majority of things. Remember, Shonn [Greene] kind of had some injuries through training camp, and then we had Leon Washington, a little different. But these are three guys that are capable of being starters themselves, so I think we’ll play all of them and, will we ride the hot hand? Sure, that’s always possibility also.”
On defense, Dee Milliner will be spotlighted after calling himself the best cornerback in football. Dimitri Patterson, who struggled this week, will start opposite Milliner and Jets fans will be watching him closely. Quarterback Andrew Luck and the Colts starting offense will present some challenges for the Jets, even in a preseason game.
“It is a great opportunity, you are going against a team with a great quarterback, a marquee quarterback,” Ryan said. “That [T.Y.] Hilton guy is a stud receiver. They have some good receiving tight ends, and they like to run the football. I think it’s going to be a good test for our defense and a good test for them, too.”