CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Haason who?
OK, so that may be overstating it, but Jets defensive end Will McDonald sacked Panthers quarterback Jack Plummer on Saturday night, giving some hope that the 2023 first-round pick can help fill the void left by Haason Reddick if the latter’s holdout stretches into the season.
McDonald made the play in the second quarter of the Jets’ 15-12 victory over Carolina in their second preseason game of the summer.
Jets coach Robert Saleh again chose to rest all of his starters, so there was not much to take away from this one that featured seven field goals.
McDonald provided the one notable play of the night.
The Panthers had a third-and-12 at their own 28-yard line.
McDonald used his patented spin move to beat Panthers tackle Ricky Lee.
He then wrapped up Plummer and brought him to the ground.
“Will can rush the passer,” Saleh said. “We’re not worried about him. To get it on his inside move was pretty cool.”
The sack was a positive for McDonald, who did not have much of a role as a rookie last year.
He only played 16 percent of the defensive snaps after the Jets took him No. 15 overall in the draft.
McDonald did manage three sacks in that limited playing time.
“I’ve got to make production,” McDonald said after the win over the Panthers. “That’s my ultimate goal.”
The Jets need McDonald to take a step forward this season after letting top edge rusher Bryce Huff depart in free agency.
Huff led the team with 10 sacks last season.
The Jets also traded John Franklin-Myers, who had 3 ½ sacks last season.
The Jets need McDonald and Micheal Clemons to pick up the slack left by those absences and with Reddick still missing.
“At the end of the day, those are the next men up, right?” Saleh said. “The only thing I expect out of all of them is phenomenal effort and strain. If you do that on our D line, you’re going to have success. I think Will plays to that standard. He’s getting better every single day and look forward to him getting more opportunities.”
The team acquired Reddick in a trade from the Eagles in the spring, but Reddick has stayed away from the team other than showing up one day for a physical and news conference.
Reddick is seeking a new contract and he requested a trade earlier this week.
The Jets do not want to negotiate with Reddick unless he shows up to training camp.
So far, he has not buckled despite fines of $50,000 a day.
The trade request made it seem possible his holdout could stretch into the season.
The Jets open the season on Sept. 9 against the 49ers, leaving them three weeks to figure out a way to make Reddick happy.
McDonald has had a good training camp.
The coaches have praised him for getting stronger even if he has not added much weight to his 235-pound frame.
In the Jets’ first preseason game against the Commanders, McDonald used the spin move to hit Washington quarterback Jeff Driskel, but he drew a flag for roughing the passer.
Other than McDonald’s big play, there was nothing memorable about this game.
Forget about playing Aaron Rodgers, the Jets did not even play backup quarterback Tyrod Taylor on Saturday.
Rookie Andrew Peasley started the game and played the first half before Adrian Martinez took over in the second half.
The two quarterbacks are fighting for the No. 3 job and likely a place on the practice squad.
Peasley completed 7 of 11 passes for 33 yards and led the Jets on a 17-play drive that resulted in a field goal just before halftime to tie the game at 3-3.
Martinez was 7-for-17 for 67 yards with one interception.
Rookie running back Braelon Allen had eight carries for 27 yards and two catches for 12 yards.
Fellow rookie Isaiah Davis had four rushes for 14 yards and one catch for no yards. Rookie wide receiver Malachi Corley had two catches for 10 yards, one coming on a fourth-and-1 play.
The Jets got five field goals — four from backup kicker Austin Seibert.
The Jets will close the preseason against the Giants next Saturday.
They have left the door open that Rodgers could play in the game, so maybe that one could be more interesting.