NFL News & Analysis

Refocused: New York Jets 7, Tennessee Titans 3

EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ - AUGUST 12: Charone Peake #17 of the New York Jets is congratulated by teammates Elijah McGuire #35 and Brent Qvale #79 after Peake scored a touchdown in the first quarter against the Tennessee Titans during a preseason game at MetLife Stadium on August 12, 2017 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)

Marcus Mariota returned to action for the Tennessee Titans but an early touchdown from Jets QB Josh McCown to Charone Peake was the lone touchdown of the game as New York edged out the visiting Titans, 7-3.

Christian Hackenberg saw extensive action for the Jets at quarterback, Titans fans were treated to the debut performance of WR Taywan Taylor and the game featured double the amount of punts (20), than total points scored (10). With that, we refocus and give you our PFF exclusive takeaways from the contest for each team.

Top 5 Grades

S Doug Middleton, 88.3 overall grade

DI Claude Pelon, 86.4 overall grade

LB Julian Stanford, 84.6 overall grade

CB Dexter McDougle, 84.4 overall grade

S Ronald Martin, 84.2 overall grade

Performances of note:

WR Robby Anderson, 81.3 overall grade

He only ran eight routes, but Anderson made the most of them. He hauled in a 53-yarder and a nine-yarder in very impressive fashion versus Titans CB Logan Ryan. His 8.87 yards per route run were also equally as impressive.

QB Christian Hackenberg, 74.1 overall grade

The former second-round draft pick got the most extended look at quarterback for the Jets taking 27 dropbacks. His accuracy looked much improved as he hit his mark on 20 of his 23 targets, for an adjusted completion percentage of 87.0. It should be noted that his average depth of target was an extremely short 5.0 yards downfield on the night.

DI Claude Pelon, 86.4 overall grade

Pelon was very disruptive in the middle of the Jets defensive line for most of the second half. He pushed the Titans offensive line back into QB Alex Tanney's lap on numerous occasions and held his own in the run game. He finished with three stops in run defense, tied for the most of any interior defender so far this preseason.

LB Julian Stanford, 84.6 overall grade

The former Lion and Jaguar stood out on Saturday night, particularly against the Titan's strong running game. He also applied pressure and put a vicious hit on QB Alex Tanney late in the first quarter. He fielded a 74.0 pass-rush grade, and a 76.0 run defense grade.

Top 5 Grades

CB Kalan Reed, 85.8 overall grade

S Brynden Trawick, 83.3 overall grade

T Tyler Marz, 82.9 overall grade

LB Justin Staples, 80.6 overall grade

CB Jeremy Boykins, 80.4 overall grade

Performances of note:

WR Harry Douglas, 78.4 overall grade

Douglas only played 10 snaps and was able to haul in three critical catches for 49 yards, both of which ranked second among Titans wide receivers for the evening. While the receiver is on the borderline to make the final 53-man roster, averaging over 16 yards a catch can't hurt his case. His 6.13 yards per route run also won't hurt his chances.

QB Alex Tanney, 31.7 overall grade

It was a rough day for Tanney as he completed just 11-of-27 passes and was sacked a staggering six times, including a crushing blow on his first dropback which led to him being sidelined for the remained of the series. When Tanney has time, he has proven that he can make the throws as he threw for 142 yards when not feeling pressure. The Titans offensive line did not do him any favors on Saturday night however, as he did not complete a pass when facing pressure, finishing 0-of-5 with one interception and a passer rating of 0.0.

CB Kalan Reed, 85.8 overall grade

The second-year cornerback put on a show in his 45 snaps. He only allowed 12 yards on 3-of-5 targets and collected two stops as well, ultimately fielding just a 64.6 passer rating when targeted.

CB Logan Ryan, 34.8 overall grade

While Reed was superb, Ryan was the opposite. He yielded 77 yards, allowing all three targeted passes his way to be caught on just 15 snaps. Ryan missed a tackle on top of that for a very forgettable day. He fielded a 118.8 passer rating when targeted.

 

PFF Game Ball: Kalan Reed, CB

*Grades are subject to change

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