NY Jets wisely resting their starters in tonight's preseason game

NY Jets head coach Robert Saleh spoke to the media following Friday's practice and revealed that he was unsure about whether or not he would decide to play his starters in Monday's preseason game against the Atlanta Falcons.

It seems as though he's made his decision.

SNY's Connor Hughes reported Monday afternoon that the Jets were expected to rest the "vast majority of their veterans" in tonight's game. Among those sitting will be Carl Lawson, Joe Flacco, Corey Davis, Elijah Moore, and presumably many others.

This means that the Jets will lean on the duo of Mike White and Chris Streveler at quarterback with Zach Wilson still out nursing a knee injury. Ultimately, this was the best decision Saleh could have made.

The NY Jets are right to rest their starters in tonight's game

The Jets have already felt the wrath of the summer injury bug over the last few years. They've been snake-bitten by preseason injuries, whether we're talking about Carl Lawson's Achilles tear last season or injuries to the likes of Mekhi Becton and Zach Wilson within the last month.

The risk associated with playing the starters for what likely would have been 2-3 series in a vanilla scheme just wouldn't have been worth it. That's seemingly the conclusion the Jets came to as well.

Instead, the remainder of the preseason should be used to give the younger players on the roster valuable reps, especially those fighting for roster spots.

The Jets have more roster depth than they've had in a long time which will likely necessitate some difficult cuts. The remaining preseason games should be used to let those bottom-of-the-roster players vie for spots on the team.

There's no reason to risk an injury to someone like Carl Lawson or Quinnen Williams. The Jets already know what they have in Joe Flacco. It just isn't worth it to jeopardize their health over a few live reps.

Saleh indicated on Friday that he was very pleased with the work the Jets got in during their joint practices with the Falcons. That might have contributed to his decision to let the starters rest.

The Jets need to go into the regular season as healthy as possible. This decision helps protect some of the team's most important players.