I don’t care that these New York Jets would get blown out by the New Jersey Generals of 35 years ago. It’s a football game. So let’s appreciate what we have. An upgrade on the daily Titans training camp sessions that are wearing on all involved at this point, and a handy diversion from the whole nuclear war thing. Most of the intrigue will be found in the play of the reserves Saturday night at MetLife Stadium, because they’ll get most of the snaps. The Jets do have some real, live NFL players in their starting front seven, though, so this will be a decent look for the Titans running game. Lots of things worth watching in this game, so let’s take it position by position.

QUARTERBACK: Marcus Mariota has done everything in camp the Titans have wanted to see. He is passing and running at a high level. Now is his first chance to step on a field and face guys who are allowed to tackle him. Guys who want to tackle him. It will be an important, albeit brief, night of work. And then with Matt Cassel unlikely to play much if at all thanks to offseason thumb surgery, this will be a major opportunity for Alex Tanney to show why the Titans should keep three quarterbacks this season.

RUNNING BACK: Derrick Henry will start and get the starter treatment, a series or two. And then it’s on to a battle I find very interesting: David Fluellen vs. Khalfani Muhammad for No. 3 running back. There are other backs on the roster, including new signee Brandon Radcliff of Louisville. But right now it looks like one of these two, and it hinges on this question: Do the Titans feel the need for a true change of pace at No. 3, or is a reserve who can do more things of higher value? I ask because I have a hard time seeing the Titans employing a No. 3 back on a regular basis this season. I have a hard time seeing them use the No. 3 back much at all unless there’s an injury to Henry or starter DeMarco Murray. Those guys are too valuable, as are the opportunities to use them both. They can both catch the ball and I think Henry will be better this season in pass protection. So that would seem to favor Fluellen, who has looked good in camp and is the more complete back.

But then sometimes you watch Muhammad slice into the open field and wonder if that threat could be put to use in spots.

“The thing about me is I have speed, I’m going to be a change of pace,” Muhammad said. “Come in and do different things. Not to say I can’t go through the trenches and stuff, but we’ve got some big dudes who do that well. I’ve got to bring something different to the table.”

And that’s why he was drafted, and preseason games give him the opportunity to dazzle against live competition and strengthen his case. In this competition – as with many of them – the value of a player on special teams can make the difference.

“Special teams, I’m a 1 or 2 in all of those and that’s what I’m really going to thrive on,” Fluellen said. “Being a factor there. Competition is really intense because you’re not just competing with offensive players, you’re competing with defensive players too. They’re trying to get on special teams too, because that’s how guys are going to make the club, off that. That competition brings out the best in everybody.”

Also worth watching in the backfield: Rookie fullback Joe Bacci is trying to push Jalston Fowler, and Bacci has looked good at times catching the ball. It’s all about physicality at the point of attack, of course. And we must never forget the fullbacks.

RECEIVER: Unfortunately for the Titans and for fans who want to see the No. 5 overall pick on the field, no Corey Davis in this game and still a “week to week” tag on his hamstring injury. But you’ll probably get a glimpse of what Mariota and former Jet Eric Decker have been building on the practice field, and Davis’ absence has ramped up fellow rookie Taywan Taylor’s No. 1 reps in the slot. He has to catch the ball with more consistency, but he is consistently fast and elusive. Rishard Matthews quietly looks very good in camp as well, by the way. In the roster-battle portion of the night, Harry Douglas, Tre McBride and Mekale McKay are players of note. Douglas returning still comes down to this question for me: Is Eric Weems more valuable as a kick returner than Douglas is as a leader and reliable veteran?

TIGHT END: Delanie Walker came to camp in top shape and will leave Saturday’s game quickly along with the other starters. The obvious player to watch here is rookie Jonnu Smith. He’s a nice weapon in the passing game, no doubt about it. But if he can be a legitimate blocker as a rookie, the Titans’ options in their two-tight end look must have Terry Robiskie smiling in his sleep. Can he get the job done there and keep defenses off balance as a result?

“I do, I think he can,” Mike Mularkey said of Smith. “Just based on this point in the practices, I really do. He’s got a lot on his plate, learning two positions. The tight ends have a lot on their plates because we move a lot. This offense is a constant work in progress as far as moving people, moving pieces, motions, shifts, personnel. He’s got a lot to learn. And he’s done a good job with keeping pace with the demands.”

This group is pretty clear-cut to me, it’s going to be those two and Phillip Supernaw, who has looked good catching the ball in camp. If there’s a fourth tight end, it’s Jace Amaro, a receiving threat and former Jet who was mostly on the practice squad last season.

OFFENSIVE LINE: Keep the starters healthy. Pretty simple. And then you know Dennis Kelly is the third tackle. The interior battles are interesting, and that second unit is going to get a ton of work in this game. Big night for rookie Corey Levin, the former Chattanooga All-American who has been working as Ben Jones’ backup at center. He’s had some ups and downs there but plays with physicality. And this is a chance to get a look at massive tackle Brad Seaton of Villanova, 6-foot-8 and 311 pounds of rookie.

DEFENSIVE LINE: Antwaun Woods might be the non-starter who is getting the most love so far in camp. He has been a force in practice.

“Just came in with a chip on my shoulder, trying to move up the ladder,” said Woods, who was a rookie practice squadder last season.

“He's on a mission,” Mularkey said of Woods. “He's absolutely on a mission, he has been the whole offseason. He's tagged along with Jurrell Casey, every time I saw one, the other was close by in the weight room. The whole offseason he's been trying to watch somebody that does it right and has been successful for doing that. He comes out here, he works. I've pointed him out in offensive meetings, the way he plays.”

Casey sees the same things. Woods isn’t the only backup who has impressed Casey, though.

“Cameron (Robbins), he’s doing a heck of a job,” Casey said of a rookie free agent out of Northwestern. “He’s definitely a young guy, a free agent we signed, but he’s definitely stuck out to me. He’s been improving every day. He’s a guy who takes great coaching. And Angelo (Blackson), our nose tackle, he’s a beast in the middle. Kind of reminds me of Antwaun Woods, somebody coming in hungry and wanting a spot.”

Sylvester Williams was the big free-agent signing from Denver, and his work will be limited like Casey’s. The relentless Karl Klug won’t play, though he is expected to return to action Monday. This is an important camp for second-year player and 2016 second-round pick Austin Johnson, and so far he has been getting the job done.

“It’s a lot less thinking for me and a lot more playing now,” Johnson said.

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“Obviously the better you know (the defense) the faster you play,” Mularkey said of Johnson. “He’s grown being in an NFL weight room for a year, that’s helped him. But he actually, as (last) year got later in the season, he started playing at a high level, kind of like what we saw on (his college) tape. He’s still doing that.”

Saturday’s game is a chance for someone else to rise up and make an impression, including Jimmy Staten, trying to make it three Middle Tennessee State Blue Raiders on this team.

LINEBACKER: The only question with the starting four is whether the inside guys can improve in pass coverage this season. Avery Williamson and Wesley Woodyard definitely worked on it in the offseason. But UCLA rookie Jayon Brown was brought in for those skills, and now that I think of it, he might be getting even more love than Woods through two weeks of practices. He looks fast and decisive out there with the second unit. It has helped him to have former college teammate Aaron Wallace around to “talk to me about details and how to take notes and stuff like that,” Brown said, and Titans linebackers coach Lou Spanos coached him for one season at UCLA. But it’s still about making plays, and now Brown must translate that from practice field to game.

“Just trying to develop myself as a full-time backer, not trying to label myself as a coverage linebacker or a run stopper,” Brown said. “I want to do everything.”

There’s a lot of competition here for what should be eight or nine spots. Erik Walden seems to have one, and probably Wallace, and you would think Nate Palmer, and then there’s the edge rushing of rookie Josh Carraway… To repeat, special teams will help dictate some of that. And one guy who will definitely make the team and is being mentioned way too late in this section is second-year reserve Kevin Dodd. He’s very important this season and the Titans want to see him flashing more as a playmaker.

CORNERBACK: Yes, Adoree’ Jackson is a major attraction, both as a returner and as a rookie first-round pick trying to earn a starting spot on defense. But this is also the debut of the Titans’ primary free-agent signing, Logan Ryan. He has been what I expected so far, solid and physical. He’s not a superstar, but he is an upgrade. Saturday also is a chance for fans to see why LeShaun Sims has been holding steady as a starter throughout camp. He’s been doing it in practice, but these games will say a lot about where he and Jackson end up when the season arrives. There are a lot of solid contenders for the final roster spots at corner, with Tye Smith recently making plays and Demontre Hurst hobbling at a bad time to be hobbling right now. The second half of this game will provide some clarity on who is where in the coaches’ eyes.

“I’m noticing the guys at the bottom of the roster are making plays, so it’s kind of giving Deshea (Townsend) a tough decision on who we want,” Titans safety Kevin Byard said. “I’m sure these preseason games will tell a lot about these guys. I feel like the whole DB room has more playmaking ability and it’s showing right now.”

SAFETY: The Titans are counting heavily on Byard this season, and this will be a glimpse of his new role and how we works with free-agent signing Johnathan Cyprien. The book on Cyprien – physical against the run, vulnerable at times in space – seems about right so far, and Da’Norris Searcy is going to be in the mix heavily this season as well. I’m interested to see how Denzel Johnson and massive Brynden Trawick play in this game as they battle to be the fourth safety.

SPECIAL TEAMS: Taylor and Smith, two rookies expected to help the passing game this season, were singled out by Mularkey for the way they’ve been playing on various special teams. This was a clear area of emphasis in the offseason, and the Titans want to see some difference-making plays right away. Also, with a 90-man roster in the first dress rehearsal of August, getting through with 11 men on the field for each play in the kicking game is a major win.

Contact Joe Rexrode at jrexrode@tennessean.com at follow him on Twitter @joerexrode.