Getty New York Jets head coach Robert Saleh would welcome back this important veteran in Week 1.
The big New York Jets news on September 7 was about Zach Wilson, but a larger Week 1 story flew way under the radar because of the quarterback bombshell.
Starting cornerback D.J. Reed Jr. has been in and out of the lineup all summer and is currently questionable for the home opener against the Baltimore Ravens. Obviously, the veteran would be a huge help in containing a quarterback like Lamar Jackson, both through the air and on the ground.
Today, Jets head coach Robert Saleh provided a positive injury update on Reed.
D.J. Reed Returns to Practice
During his Wednesday press conference for Ravens week, Coach Saleh confirmed that Reed will “be back on the practice field today.”
CB D.J. Reed returns to practice today. Good news for the defense. #Jets
The comment was so quick and out of focus that you might have missed it if you had the presser up in the background — however, this is a huge development for defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich and his unit. Having Reed back gives Jackson less room to operate in the passing game.
His veteran savvy and experience would come in handy against a QB as unique and dynamic as the former NFL MVP out of Louisville. Reed is also an upgrade on backup Bryce Hall both in coverage, and the run game.
Will Parkinson of “Turn on the Jets” spoke on the importance of the CB’s return: “I know everyone is waiting on Zach Wilson news but pretty important as well whether DJ Reed can go week 1 or not… missed most of the summer with a soft tissue injury, Reed is a heck of a player opposite Sauce Gardner.”
I know everyone is waiting on Zach Wilson news but pretty important as well whether DJ Reed can go week 1 or not… missed most of the summer with a soft tissue injury, Reed is a heck of a player opposite Sauce Gardner
This update certainly puts him on track for a potential return, assuming no setbacks occur before Sunday.
D.J. Reed’s Health Will Be Paramount in 2022
That soft tissue injury Parkinson referred to was a tweaked hamstring that kept Reed out parts of minicamp and training camp. Later, the free-agent acquisition hurt his knee during joint practice against the New York Giants.
Although neither appeared to be all that serious, Reed’s health will be paramount toward the Jets chances in 2022. Yes, the roster has depth at cornerback but they went out and spent $33 million ($18M guaranteed) on the former Seattle Seahawks breakout for a reason.
Reed has missed 10 games and been hindered by nagging injuries throughout his career but when injury-free, he was quietly one of the most reliable coverage experts in the NFL last season — analytically speaking. Jets X-Factor’s Michael Nania detailed his rise in March:
Reed played 606 snaps in coverage across 14 games (all starts). He saw 68 targets in his direction and allowed 35 catches for 383 yards and two touchdowns while snagging two interceptions. That is a fantastic stat-line in many ways. Most impressively, Reed provided an incredible amount of value with his ability to prevent yardage on a per-snap basis. Reed allowed 0.63 yards per cover snap. That ranked sixth-best out of 96 qualified cornerbacks. For reference, the league average for cornerbacks was 1.08. Going off the league average for yards per cover snap among cornerbacks (1.08), Reed would be expected to allow 654.5 yards across his 606 coverage snaps. Instead, he only allowed 383 yards, a margin of +271.5. In essence, this means he saved 271.5 yards compared to what the average cornerback would have allowed over the same amount of playing time. Reed ranked third-best in this category at his position. The only cornerbacks to save more yards were Casey Hayward (+342.1) and A.J. Terrell (+416.7). Terrell was a second-team All-Pro this season for his efforts. Hayward is a three-time All-Pro.
Nania also noted that “Reed allowed a passer rating of 66.0 on throws into his coverage” in 2021 (seventh-best in NFL) and a “completion percentage 11.9 points below expectation” according to Next Gen Stats (fourth-best in the NFL).
With a top-ranked rookie in Gardner growing alongside him and one of the most relentless pass-rushing units in the league, the Jets can become a very hard team to throw the ball against if all goes well and everyone stays on the field.