This was not a day for dreaming.
It was a reality-check practice for an offense that envisions making major improvements this coming season.
The additions of Geno Smith at quarterback and two first-round skill-position draft picks (receiver Omar Cooper Jr. and tight end Kenyon Sadiq), along with the return of Breece Hall, Garrett Wilson and four-fifths of the offensive line, have created optimism in Florham Park.
Saturday afternoon, the Jets held an intrasquad scrimmage, and it looked like the same offense that has been annually one of the worst in the NFL.
Smith struggled after a solid start and his lone touchdown pass should’ve been ruled a David Bailey sack.
The offensive line had issues blocking the second overall pick in April’s draft and dealing with blitzes.
Penalties were a problem, especially as the hot morning wore on.
Afterward, Aaron Glenn spun the first-team offense’s performance, crediting the unit with a fast start and quality finish.
He thought both sides of the ball performed well.
That was his interpretation.
“This was a ‘thud day,’ but it was a competitive day,” he said. “Man, it really came out with our offense, I thought they did a really good job of starting fast and they were moving the ball pretty well. And then the defense picked it up right in between and those guys played really, really good. They executed exactly what I wanted them to execute. The pressures were really, really good, our guys were dialed in.”
Later, Glenn said he would need to watch the film to offer a more in-depth analysis of the offense.
It should be noted that Sadiq, expected to be a major part of this offense, is still out after a setback from his hernia operation.
Wilson, the star No. 1 Jets receiver, sat out the first few drives.
Smith has enjoyed a mostly strong training camp and there have been days the offense, under new coordinator Frank Reich, has gotten the better of the defense.
But that didn’t happen on this day.
“Good in a lot of areas and not so good in some others, but that’s what this time is for, working out some of the penalties and things like that,” center Josh Myers said, when asked how he would describe the offense’s performance. “Up-and-down day, I thought.”
Smith finished 12-for-20 for 157 yards and a touchdown.
But had it been a real game, he might never have gotten the touchdown pass off, as Bailey was right there for the sack.
The 36-yard throw was deflected by safety Minkah Fitzpatrick, but Isaiah Williams was there in the back of the end zone to haul it in.
On the first-team offense’s third series there was a delay-of-game penalty, followed by three incompletions.
On the following drive, Braelon Allen turned a short completion into a long gain, all the way to the 4-yard line, but the drive stalled.
During three red zone series, Smith was sacked twice and the defense dominated.
The following series started at the 10, and after three straight runs, there were two false starts.
On Friday, Reich raved about what he has seen so far, from Smith to his receivers, running backs and offensive line.
He saved his highest praise for Smith.
“Obviously at quarterback, Geno’s a leader, he’s a leader of the offense, make no mistake about it, in every way, shape and form,” he said. “This man is laser focused like people don’t understand. Like he comes to work, he comes to work and he’s locked in. And I feel like the whole offense plays off of that, that’s a really big deal.”
Saturday wasn’t Smith’s best day.
The offense similarly struggled.
It, of course, was just one practice.
The Jets figure to learn more about this unit next week in their joint practices against the Buccaneers.
“That’s the good thing about joint practices,” Glenn said, “is you get to test what you do against another team.”
