The Jets closed the preseason with a 23–6 loss to the Giants at MetLife Stadium, finishing exhibition play at 1–2. With nearly all of the starters watching, the game was an audition reel for roster hopefuls — and it produced two early takeaways, a bruising opening touchdown drive, a kicking problem and a worrying injury list.
What actually happened in the Jets’ 23–6 loss to the Giants?
The Jets led 6–0 after one scoring drive, then never scored again.
The opening possession was the best sequence of the night and, tellingly, the least complicated. Ten plays, 36 yards, every one of them a run, finished by RB Chip Trayanum from a yard out. It was the sort of drive a coaching staff shows a roster bubble player as evidence that he can be trusted. Jason Sanders then missed the extra point, which turned a 7–0 lead into a 6–0 lead and, in a game decided by field position and field goals, mattered more than it looked at the time.
The defense matched it. On the Giants’ opening drive, DT T’Vondre Sweat fought through a double team and still got a hand on a Jameis Winston pass; Qwan’tez Stiggers knocked the ball loose downfield and LB Marcelino McCrary-Ball caught it, returning the interception to the Giants’ 36. Two drives later McCrary-Ball punched the ball out of Braxton Berrios’ hands at the 4-yard line and Stiggers recovered it in the end zone. Two takeaways inside a quarter, both created by the same pair of defenders.
From there the night drained away. Tyrone Tracy Jr. scored from six yards out to put the Giants ahead 7–6 at the end of the first quarter, a 23-yard field goal made it 10–6 before the two-minute warning, and two more second-half field goals were followed by a 37-yard Jake Haener touchdown pass to Xavier Gipson with 10:30 left. Odell Beckham Jr. was the game’s most dangerous receiver with three catches for 53 yards.
Head coach Aaron Glenn was blunt afterwards, saying there were “a lot of things that we have to clean up,” while pointing ahead to the opener against Tennessee.
How did Cade Klubnik look in his second preseason start?
Uneven — competent in rhythm, poor under pressure, which is the normal rookie split.
Klubnik played the entire first half and finished 6-of-13 for 59 yards with an interception. His best throw was a 22-yarder to Trayanum, who made a low fingertip catch on the right sideline and turned it into a chunk gain. His worst sequence was the two-minute drill before halftime, where he took a sack and the Jets punted.
Glenn’s assessment was that Klubnik was “up and down,” and he singled out exactly that two-minute possession — taking sacks and losing yardage in a situation built for neither. That is a useful thing to be bad at in August. Two-minute management is coachable, repeatable and does not depend on arm talent; it is the part of a young quarterback’s game that improves fastest with reps.
Behind him, Bailey Zappe went 2-of-5 for 12 yards in the third quarter and was sacked twice, and Brady Cook was 3-of-6 for 26 yards in the fourth while moving the offense into range for a field goal that never landed. None of the three quarterbacks threw a touchdown pass.
Is the kicking job actually settled?
Less settled after this game than before it.
The Jets had already committed to Sanders by waiving Cade York earlier in the week, leaving one kicker on the roster. Sanders then missed the extra point after the opening touchdown and was short from 54 yards in the fourth quarter.
Glenn declined to panic publicly, noting Sanders has kicked well in practice and that the staff would evaluate it. That is the only reasonable position to take in August with one kicker under contract, but it is worth watching: a team that clears the position down to a single name has removed its own margin for error, and the available replacements shrink considerably once every roster in the league sets at 53.
How bad was the injury list?
Bad enough to overshadow the result — six Jets were hurt, two went to hospital.
The serious one is Trayanum, the night’s most productive offensive player. He took a hit on the final play before halftime, sustained a neck injury and was taken to hospital; the team said he was awake, alert and had movement in his extremities. Cornerback Tre Brown also went to hospital with a finger injury.
- RB Chip Trayanum — neck injury, taken to hospital, awake and alert with movement in his extremities
- CB Tre Brown — finger injury, also taken to hospital
- Edge Joseph Ossai — foot injury, on the night of his preseason debut
- G Omar Cooper Jr. — shoulder injury, left in the first half
- RB Dominic Richardson — elbow
- WR Cam Camper — head and neck
The timing is the cruel part. Every player on that list was competing for one of the last places on the roster, and an injury in the final exhibition game removes a player’s ability to influence the decision at the exact moment it is being made. For a fuller picture of who the Jets were already without, see our update on Breece Hall’s groin strain.
What does the preseason tell us going into Week 1?
That the first-team defense is ahead of the first-team offense, and the back of the roster is thin.
Judge the three games by who was on the field rather than by the 1–2 record. The starters played meaningfully once, in Pittsburgh, and shut the Steelers out 17–0. The two losses came in games where the roster on the field will largely not be employed here in September. Preseason records are close to meaningless; the split of information is not.
What the Giants game genuinely revealed was depth. The two takeaways were real and came from players fighting for jobs, which is exactly what August football is for. But an offense that gained ground only when it handed the ball to one running back, and a kicking operation that left four points on the field, are both legitimate concerns about the margins of the roster rather than its top.
The cutdown to 53 has since passed, and attention now moves to Tennessee. Full results and dates are on the Jets schedule, the roster picture is tracked on the Jets roster breakdown, and our continuing New York Jets analysis will follow the Week 1 preparation.
Frequently Asked Questions
What was the final score of the Jets-Giants preseason game?
The Giants beat the Jets 23-6 at MetLife Stadium on Friday, 28 August 2026, in the third and final week of the preseason.
Who scored the Jets’ only touchdown against the Giants?
Running back Chip Trayanum scored from one yard out to cap a 10-play, 36-yard opening drive made up entirely of runs. Jason Sanders missed the extra point.
How did the Jets finish the 2026 preseason?
At 1-2. They lost to Tampa Bay 24-16, shut out Pittsburgh 17-0, then lost to the Giants 23-6.
How did Cade Klubnik play against the Giants?
He completed 6 of 13 passes for 59 yards with an interception across the entire first half, and was sacked once during the two-minute drill before halftime.
Which Jets players were injured against the Giants?
Six: Chip Trayanum (neck), Tre Brown (finger), Joseph Ossai (foot), Omar Cooper Jr. (shoulder), Dominic Richardson (elbow) and Cam Camper (head and neck). Trayanum and Brown were both taken to hospital.
Who do the Jets play in Week 1?
Tennessee. Head coach Aaron Glenn pointed to the Titans immediately after the Giants game as the regular-season shift in focus.