On Day 1 of their joint practice, the Giants’ defensive line registered four sacks against Jets quarterback Justin Fields.

Big Blue’s front four was just as dominant on Day 2, this time at the Giants’ facility in East Rutherford.

Giants edge rusher Brian Burns was again unblockable as the two-time Pro Bowler registered three sacks. He had two of the Giants’ four sacks against Fields in Wednesday’s practice. Kayvon Thibodeaux also had a sack against the Jets’ offensive line.

“I’m just trying to take my game to a level it’s never been,” Burns said. “That requires me doing things I never did.

“I’ve been working with [Dexter Lawrence] Dex quite a bit, talking to Dex a lot [about] just how to manipulate body positions and try to use my length and power more and not just my speed and finesse. That’s been good to me so far so I’m going to keep working on that.”

However, Jets coach Aaron Glenn thought the team responded better than they did on Tuesday and said the joint practices will be a building block for the regular season.

The Jets’ offensive line is considered one of the team’s strengths, thanks to the significant resources they have invested in the unit over the last few seasons. They have three first-round picks — Olu Fashanu, Alijah Vera-Tucker and Armand Membou — on the line. They also drafted center Joe Tippmann in the second round in 2023.

While the ground attack was again solid, with Hall and Braelon Allen leading the way, Fields was pressured consistently and used his legs to escape pressure on either designed runs or when he felt trouble coming his way. He completed 7-of-12 passes, with most of those completions being check-downs.

During the two-minute drill at the end of practice, Fields completed 3-of-6 passes, but was unable to get the Jets into the end zone. He threw two bad passes to Garrett Wilson, one of which ended the drive and practice. Burns also sacked Fields during the period.

“Just good work in a competitive atmosphere going up against different people,” Jets running back Breece Hall said. “It is good to go up against more of your peers and get a different look, different body types and different people.

“Coming together as a real team and another opponent.”

The Jets’ offense, in particular their passing game, has been uneven throughout training camp. At times, Fields has struggled with accuracy and ball placement.

“The two-minute, man, we didn’t get a chance to do what we wanted to do in that situation, and that was probably the only situation that I wasn’t very pleased with,” Glenn said. “But I’m not going to let that get me down from a lot of things they did well today.

“Again, I’m very proud of how our guys came out and challenged, and I challenged them yesterday in the meeting and they came out and performed the way I wanted them to perform.”

The Giants could have one of the better defensive lines in football with Burns, Thibodeaux, Lawrence and rookie Abdul Carter. With the Steelers and star T.J. Watt coming to town in Week 1, this week’s practices and preseason game will serve as a tune-up for possibly what’s to come.

The Jets will also face the Bills, Buccaneers and Dolphins in the first four weeks of the season.

“Obviously, they had some guys that were out, but it is a building block for our guys because of the heat and all the other elements that you can take into effect would happen, our guys pushed through it,” Glenn said. “You have to do that because we have to play in Tampa. We have to play in Miami.

“We’re going to play in situations even worse than this. So, to be able to go out and continue to push, and push, and push, and continue to challenge, it’s a huge building block for us, and we have to continue to do that.”

MINOR FIGHT BREAKS OUT

On the opposite side of the field, tempers flared up between the Jets’ defense and the Giants’ offense.

After Will McDonald IV tackled Tyrone Tracy Jr., Giants offensive linemen Greg Van Roten and Jon Runyan took exception to Tracy getting hit late after his run. Both of them got into it with McDonald and Qwan’tez Stiggers, but the fracas was quickly broken up.

The Jets and Giants did not have any live tackling during the two joint practices. Not only have the Jets been tackling during their practice during training camp, but they have had one-on-one drills between defenders and ball carriers in Glenn’s effort to improve in that area.

The Giants have not been practicing live tackling.

“These practices, they’ll get chippy every now and then,” Glenn said. “But these are grown men, and they’re not kids, and they understand how to get work in. The one thing I told the guys is, ‘Listen, we compete, but we protect.’ I think the guys did a good job of that.”

GARDNER SITS OUT

A day after participating in Tuesday’s joint practice, Jets cornerback Sauce Gardner did not practice against the Giants because of a sore calf.

“We will continue to evaluate him and see exactly where he’s at,” Glenn said.

In addition to Gardner, defensive tackle Quinnen Williams and pass rusher Jermaine Johnson also did not practice.

https://www.nydailynews.com/2025/08/13/jets-offensive-line-giants-justin-fields-brian-burns-glenn/