Jets vs Eagles: Postgame Grades, Notes and Quotes for New York

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — The play was set up perfectly. The New York Jets had just run six times on their first seven plays against the Eagles front. Philadelphia was looking for the eighth up the middle, and Jets offensive coordinator Chan Gailey knew it. 

So the veteran play-caller sent a different signal into the headset of quarterback Matt Flynn: Run the play fake, and go deep.

"It was a good all around play," Flynn said. "We got good protection, a good route and the throw was there." 

Flynn stood in a perfect pocket and delivered an 18-yard strike to receiver Chris Owusu on a skinny post. The touchdown was the first of the day for the Jets, who went on to defeat the Eagles, 24-18, in Thursday night's preseason finale. Flynn finished 10-of-14 for 136 yards and threw a pair of touchdowns and one interception.

Flynn's quarterback rating? An impressive 111.9. 

"For the most part, I think I did well," Flynn said. "I mean, the offense did well the entire game. The third down conversion percentage had to be really high. We ran a lot of plays. Overall, I felt good." 

As an offense, the Jets accounted for 425 total yards, held the ball for over 41 minutes and racked up 25 first downs. The team converted 14 of 18 third downs and gashed Philadelphia's defensive front to the tune of 215 rushing yards. 

Defensively, the Jets gave Eagles quarterback Matt Barkley fits. The former USC star completed just 4 of 9 passes for 45 yards, was sacked once and was intercepted on his second pass of the game. Tim Tebow, who split every other quarter with Barkley, went 11-of-17 for 189 yards with a pair of touchdown passes and one interception. Jets cornerback Darrin Walls intercepted both passes. 

Jets defensive lineman Deion Simon had a sack, along with Jamari Lattimore and Trevor Reilly. Outside linebacker Deion Barnes was active, recording four tackles, 1.5 sacks and two quarterback hits.

The Penn State product's performance was just what Jets coach Todd Bowles wanted to see. 

"I wanted to see Barnes play," Bowles said. "I haven't seen him play much, and I really wanted to get a good look at him before I make a (roster) decision on him." 

The victory for the Jets improves the team's preseason record to 3-1. The loss for the Eagles was their first of the preseason and drops their record to 3-1.

Quarterbacks

Overall it was a pretty nice outing for the Jets quarterbacks. Matt Flynn finished with a 111.9 quarterback rating and tossed a pair of scores, and Josh Johnson looked decent, throwing for 82 yards and running for 76 more. But a horrid throw from Flynn that was intercepted in the shadow of his own end zone, along with a few more that could ended badly, bring the grade to a respectable, but not incredible, B.

Running Backs

Both Zac Stacy and Daryl Richardson looked good Thursday and combined to rush for 215 yards on 50 carries. That’s an average of 4.3 yards per carry. Add in three combined receptions for 41 yards yards, and you get an overall grade of an A.

Receivers

Easily the stars of Thursday for the Jets, just about everyone looked good. Led by Chris Owusu’s five receptions for 72 yards and a score, all made plays. Walt Powell looked good, and Quincy Enunwa flashed. It was good showing for all Jets pass catchers. Give them an A. 

Tight Ends

Not one catch for Kellen Davis or Arthur Lynch and just one for Wes Saxton. Will have to go back and watch the film to judge blocking, but either way, an 'eh’ showing, and an ‘eh’ grade: C-.

Offensive Line

The big men up front allowed just one sack and paved the way for 215 rushing yards. Good showing from the reserves, although Brent Qvale did get beat in near criminal fashion by Bryan Braman. Give the group, as a whole, a B+.

Defensive Line

Not much pressure from the Jets thre-down lineman, and Philly averaged 4.9 yards a rush. The group did help their cause with two goal line stands. B.

Linebackers

Deion Barnes had a very active night, finishing with four tackles and 1.5 sacks. Trevor Reilly had a sack himself and could have had another if not for an intentional grounding call on Tim Tebow. Overall, nice game for the two: B+.

Defensive Backs

A pair of interceptions for Darrin Walls, a big hit to break up a pass by Durrell Eskridge and a stick by Rontez Miles on third-and-goal at the one to finish off a goal-line stand earn the Jets secondary an A. The unit looked good, although, that tends to happen with the two quarterbacks you’re facing are Tim Tebow and Matt Barkley.

Special Teams

A missed field goal, a hold that nullified a 57-yard kick return and a near coverage breakdown on a kick return…it wasn’t a pretty day for the Jets special teams. D+.

Coaching

No injuries, the players that needed to step up did and not many mental mistakes. It was the fourth preseason game, and Todd Bowles didn’t try to make it more than that. B.

Truthfully, all Matt Flynn had to do was not be awful. As long as he took the field, moved the New York Jets offense a bit and showed he can manage a game, the Jets backup quarterback job would be his.

Instead of doing that, he lit up the night sky in New York’s final preseason game.

Playing the entire first half, Flynn went 10-of-14 for 136 yards with a pair of touchdowns and one interception. On New York’s first possession, Flynn connected with receiver Chris Owusu for a 18-yard touchdown. On the next drive, he dumped it off to Zac Stacy on a screen, who scampered into the end zone from five yards out.

Flynn looked calm, cool, collected and remarkably good considering this week was his first getting team reps in the Jets offense.

It’s highly unlikely Flynn will remain on the Jets roster once Geno Smith is cleared to play. In a league where some teams keep two quarterbacks, the Jets wont keep four. It’ll be Ryan Fitzpatrick or Geno Smith as the starter, the other as the backup and rookie Bryce Petty as the emergency No. 3.

But what Flynn showed Thursday night is he’s more than capable of being the veteran presence head coach Todd Bowles so desperately wants behind Fitzpatrick. He’s not flashy; he’s certainly not elite. But Flynn showed he can hold down the fort if worse comes to worst.

There may not be a harder decision presented to Jets coach Todd Bowles and GM Mike Maccagnan Saturday afternoon than which, and how many, receivers to keep on New York’s 53-man roster.

And Thursday night’s game against the Eagles didn’t do much to clear the cloudy waters.

Walter Powell, despite being brought back on a hold, showed value on special teams with a 57-yard kick return (after returning a punt 59 yards for a touchdown last week) and added another 58 yards on three receptions. Chris Owusu, fresh off his first full week of practice since suffering a concussion, caught five passes for 72 yards, including an 18-yard touchdown from quarterback Matt Flynn.

There’s also Shaq Evans, who, while held quiet against the Eagles, was the team’s sixth-round pick a year ago, and Quincy Enunwa, who is a candidate to fill the void left by tight end Jace Amaro’s IR placement. Jeremy Kerley has had the most NFL success of the bunch, but he has seen reps with the third, fourth and fifth teams in camp and the preseason.

The only thing certain is that Brandon Marshall, Eric Decker and rookie Devin Smith will make the team. After that? It’s anyone’s guess.

At the most, it’s hard to imagine the Jets keeping more than seven receivers. That leaves three open spots, and five potential candidates. The odd man out? It’s a debate Bowles and Maccagnan will no doubt be having.

Powell has the edge above all on special teams, but he isn’t a polished receiver. Owusu is the most polished receiver, but he is one concussion away from potentially having his NFL career ended. Evans has potential, but he hasn’t capitalized on it. Enunwa has size (6-2, 220 lbs), but he hasn’t done much in the preseason.

The best guess as to who stays and who goes? Just wait and see.

There was a time early in training camp in which Zac Stacy was receiving fourth-team reps with the Jets' scrubs. New York liked Chris Ivory first, followed by Bilal Powell, and Daryl Richardson was getting whatever reps were left.

Since the Jets began playing preseason games, that order has been shaken up a bit.

Stacy has improved each game he’s played, and it all culminated in his best performance of the summer against Philadelphia. The former St. Louis Rams fifth-round pick rushed for 68 yards on 20 carries and added 30 yards on two receptions.

What was even more impressive than Stacy’s statistical numbers was how he got them. The back showed patience behind New York’s offensive line. There was a slight hesitation from Stacy up until he found the hole he wanted. Then, Stacy planted his foot and cut up the field with nice burst.

"Zac's been consistent," Jets coach Todd Bowles said after the game. "He's tough. We knew he was tough with the blocking, he can catch the ball, he can run the ball. He's been doing a great job every week. He's Mr. Consistency."

With Stevan Ridley expected to start the season on the PUP list, Stacy will have six weeks to show he deserves to stay on the roster even when the ex-New England Patriot returns. And truth be told, if Stacy continues to run as he has the last three weeks of the preseason, he could push Bilal Powell for playing time behind Ivory.

"I think I have. Yes."

Of all receivers on the bubble for the Jets, few are as versatile as Powell, and the wideout showed all that he can do Thursday night. Powell returned a kick, although it was nullified due to a hold, 57 yards. He then added three catches for 58 yards, including a really nice grab up the right sideline on a 28-yard pass from Matt Flynn.

For all intents and purposes, Powell showed he should make New York’s 53-man roster. But he’s not the only receiver who had a strong outing. Powell is battling it with Chris Owusu, Quincy Enunwa, Shaq Evans and more for one, maybe two spots.

If Powell doesn't make the Jets active 53, the team will almost certainly look to sneak him onto the practice squad, assuming someone else doesn't pick him up. 

"No. Not at all, man. I've been through enough to worry about the cuts. I've been down this road plenty of times."  

If Rontez Miles doesn’t make the Jets 53-man roster, it won’t be because he didn’t leave it all on the field.

Beloved in New York’s locker room, Miles has had a strong camp and capped it with an impressive preseason finale. The former 2013 undrafted rookie recorded a team-high eight tackles after getting the start, including a nice stick on the goal line to stop the Eagles on 3rd-and-goal.

At the moment, Miles is second on the Jets depth chart with Antonio Allen out for the year. But with the Jets needing to keep four quarterbacks (Ryan Fitzpatrick, Geno Smith, Bryce Petty, Matt Flynn/Josh Johnson), the team is going to need to cut short another spot. Veteran cornerback Darrin Walls can play both corner and safety, and the Jets have Jaiquawn Jarrett on the roster, too.

There's a chance Miles falls victim to the numbers game. 

"We'll see. We have a bunch of good receivers, so, we're going to take a look at them." 

Jeremy Kerley is one of the more interesting players on the Jets roster, partially because only the Jets coaches know how much they value the slot receiver.

After seeing a ton of playing time in three-wide sets throughout his five-year NFL career, Kerley has been a bit of an afterthought with the new Jets regime. He’s been with the fourth and fifth units in practice and the same during his first two preseason games. It’s hard to imagine Kerley being on the roster bubble, but truthfully, he may be.

Kerley has missed the last two weeks of practice while recovering from a concussion, and with his return date still unknown, the Jets could look to move on from the former fifth-round pick and give one of the team’s younger guys a shot.

Connor Hughes is the New York Jets beat writer for the Journal Inquirer and Scout.com. All quotes and advanced stats referenced and used are gathered firsthand. Connor can be reached on Twitter (@Connor_J_Hughes) or via email (connor_j_hughes@yahoo.com).