John Harbaugh’s Jaxson Dart preseason finale decision: Rust vs. injury risk

Could Jaxson Dart benefit Friday night from a nice, crisp, eight-play drive to open the preseason finale against the Jets, a possession that leads to a touchdown or field goal, with the second-year quarterback completing three or four passes before moving to the safety of the sideline? Sure. 

Would it be helpful to get the projected starting defense on the field, together, for the first time for 8-10 snaps of live action? Sure.

Perhaps that is what head coach John Harbaugh decides to do. He goes back to a time when the third of the four preseason games (imagine that) was a legitimate dress rehearsal for the real thing, when the front-line players were out there for three quarters. Nowadays, that sounds like a prehistoric approach. Risk your best players in a summer game where a score is kept and no one will remember that score the next day?

More and more, the final preseason games are used for back-end-of-the-roster decisions — figuring out the 51st, 52nd and 53rd players on the squad. That is likely how Harbaugh will handle this game at MetLife Stadium. He realizes this league-wide trend toward alleviating risk has merit even as he recalls the way it used to be.