The New York Jets’ preseason slate features four interconference matchups against NFC foes, with one familiar game out of its usual spot.
The Great Pumpkin will be visiting East Rutherford a little earlier than usual this preseason.
The New York Jets’ 2019 exhibition schedule was released on Tuesday afternoon, with the slate featuring a quartet against NFC squads. The Jets will open on the “road” against the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium before traveling to Atlanta to play the Falcons. Two more games in New Jersey round the schedule out. The New Orleans Saints and Philadelphia Eagles will come to visit the Garden State.
Official times and dates have yet to be determined, but the respective games will be held on the weeks of Aug. 8, 15, 22, and 29. All of the games will be locally broadcast on WCBS/CBS 2, with the exception of the Giants game, which will appear on WNBC/NBC 4.
The most notable development involves the Jets’ annual August showdown with their MetLife Stadium co-tenants. Normally held during the third week of the NFL preseason, the metropolitan matchup will instead open the summer slate for both squads. The switch accounts for the fact that the Jets and Giants will face off in the regular season this year on a date to be determined. Week 3’s game is often the contest in which starters play the deepest.
As a result, the Giants will be the first team to take on the Jets in their new uniforms, which were unveiled last Thursday night. It will also mark the unofficial Jets debut for free agent additions Le’Veon Bell and C.J. Mosley, while the Giants will introduce Golden Tate and Antoine Bethea.
This season marks the 51st annual preseason meeting between the Jets and Giants. The game has been informally dubbed the “Snoopy Bowl” due to shared stadium sponsor MetLife’s since-discontinued advertising featuring characters from the Peanuts franchise. Though the Jets lead the all-time series 25-24-1, the Giants narrowed the gap with a 22-16 win last preseason. The Giants will serve as the home team this summer, while the Jets host the regular season meeting in the fall.
Two matchups against NFC South opponents follow the New York showdown. In the lone game that takes them out of state, the Jets will take on the Falcons in their first unofficial visit to Mercedes-Benz Stadium. It will mark a homecoming for new Jets cornerback Brian Poole, who spent his first three NFL seasons in Atlanta.
The Jets earned their lone 2018 preseason win against the Falcons last year, defeating them 17-0 in East Rutherford. That win was their first preseason shutout since 1990, and first in a home game in franchise history. The third week’s dress rehearsal comes against the Saints, last season’s NFC regular season champions.
The preseason ends with another traditional opponent, as the Jets will face the Philadelphia Eagles for the 41st time in exhibition play. New York leads the series 24-16, though Philadelphia won a 10-9 slugfest at Lincoln Financial Field. The Jets and Eagles will likewise face off in the regular season, though reserves generally play most, if not all, of the final summer game.
The NFL’s regular season schedule will likely be released later this spring.