Cade Klubnik makes strong case to be Jets’ backup QB in preseason debut

With Geno Smith out, Friday was the Cade Klubnik show against the Buccaneers.

The rookie impressed during his limited snaps in the Jets’ 24-16 preseason opening loss to the Buccaneers.

According to the Jets, J.J. Jones (1975) and Zach Wilson (2021) are the only other rookie quarterbacks in franchise history to start the preseason opener outside of Klubnik.

Klubnik completed 5-of-7 passes for 56 yards while leading the Jets to two scoring drives against the Buccaneers. On Tuesday, Jets head coach Aaron Glenn told reporters that everyone would play in the Jets’ preseason opener. But Smith was held out due to foot soreness.

During his two drives, Klubnik looked poised and confident. He was solid during his opening drive, which resulted in a field goal for the Jets.

After almost mishandling the handoff to Breece Hall on his second snap, Klubnik looked poised and comfortable. He completed a couple of passes to Garrett Wilson, including one over the middle in traffic.

Tampa Bay’s pressure ultimately forced Klubnik and the Jets’ offense into the red zone, where they had to settle for a Cade York 27-yard field goal.

After just one series, the Jets’ starters came out of the game, but Klubnik remained under center with the second unit. It took them only four plays to find the end zone after Braelon Allen scored on a 31-yard touchdown run to make the score 10-0. This was Allen’s first game since he suffered a season-ending knee injury in Week 4 at Miami last September.

Throughout training camp, Klubnik has been entrenched in a battle with Bailey Zappe for the Jets’ primary backup quarterback role behind Smith. Both players have been uneven throughout training camp, but Klubnik is the frontrunner to win the job and was the better player against the Buccaneers. Friday was the first time Klubnik had played with the starting unit since he has typically practiced with the backups during training camp.

On his second pass of the game, Zappe threw a pick-six to cornerback Ayden Garnes, which tied the game at 10-10. On the very next drive, Zappe threw another interception, this time to safety Rashad Wisdom after wide receiver Arian Smith dropped the pass.

Glenn and general manager Darren Mougey are giving Klubnik every opportunity to win the backup job. Considering what happened last year when Brady Cook started and lost the final four games he started, that could be a scary proposition for the Jets.

However, the Jets feel that Klubnik has good mental processing and the aptitude for explosive plays downfield. Klubnik will need to limit the turnovers that plagued him at Clemson during his final season.

Klubnik wasn’t the only Jets rookie making his debut. No. 2 overall pick David Bailey, who has been a star during the first three weeks of camp, played eight snaps in his debut. He registered one tackle and a quarterback pressure.

Already in his young career, Bailey is commanding attention from opposing offenses after the Buccaneers’ offensive line double-teamed him. During the joint practices against Tampa Bay, Bailey frustrated the Buccaneers’ offensive line with his lightning-fast speed off the edge, along with his penchant for consistently getting into the backfield.

The Jets’ second preseason game will be against the Steelers on Aug. 21. It is unclear whether Aaron Rodgers will start against his former team. He did not play in Pittsburgh’s preseason-opening win against the Packers on Thursday night.