Big Blue View
The annual preseason showdown between the New York Giants and New York Jets might not be called the “Snoopy Bowl” anymore. Even so, it’s still the primary venue for the intercity rivalry between the two teams.
The game used to carry more importance as it was always the third preseason game. It was the “dress rehearsal” for the regular season when teams would play starters into the second half as well as do some rudimentary game planning.
The change to a three-game preseason made that a thing of the past and this year, the Giants and Jets are playing their second preseason game. The Giants had an impressive showing in the first preseason game, with efficient offense and a disruptive defense leading to a 34-25 win over the Buffalo Bills.
So what are we watching for this week?
This is probably the biggest question heading into the game.
“We have an idea,” Daboll said on Thursday. “We’ll do our meetings at the end of the day and make our decision on what we’re going to do.
Of course, Daboll has been cagy regarding playing time. His response to that question before the Buffalo game was similarly vague.
“Yeah, so the guys that can play will play,” he said. “And we’ll decide that after practice today.”
Daboll has to balance the need to get the starters ready to play against the Washington Commanders in Week 1 with the need for them to be healthy for the start of the season. It’s a tough balance to strike, and it’s complicated by a number of players getting dinged up through training camp and the first preseason game. It’s further complicated by the fact that the two teams had intense joint practices this week, and the Giants have a short turnaround before they face the New England Patriots on Thursday.
So we’ll be watching to see whether the starters play sparingly (if at all) this game, relying on the joint practices before playing more on Thursday. Or perhaps the team is looking at using a steady ramp-up in playing time, and trusting the 17 days between the final preseason game and Week 1 to get the team rested and ready to play.
We’ll find out later today.
We’ll get to the question on the national media’s mind in a minute.
Whether, and how much, Evan Neal plays is a big one, and related to the question about the starters.
Neal didn’t play against the Bills after not participating in the last practice before the game. He returned to practice in the second joint practice, and was thrown right into the mix. He was the second team left guard, as well as split reps with Greg Van Roten as the starting right guard. Neal could be in for a long evening if he plays with both the “starting” and second team offensive lines.
How he plays (assuming he does) is almost as important...
