After an emotional reveal during an Instagram reel on May 19, former New York Jets running back Ty Johnson has become the talk of the NYJ community over the weekend.
In case you missed it, Johnson told fans that he was released by the organization with a “non-football injury” tag after tearing his pectoral during a home workout and undergoing a team-recommended surgery. The ball carrier appeared quite shaken up over the recent turn of events on social media, which quickly caught the attention of fans and teammates.
Although several Jets reached out to Johnson on Instagram in the comment section, defensive team leader D.J. Reed Jr. sounded off on the situation publicly. “Off-site injuries while working out should have some type of protection from the team,” Reed tweeted while quoting a clip from Johnson’s video. “Same thing happened to me in San Fran.”
Reed was cut by the San Francisco 49ers organization with a non-football injury tag just two years after he was first drafted in 2018. From there, the cornerback was immediately claimed by the Seattle Seahawks in August of 2020, where he was able to turn around his career before the big payday with New York.
In a similar vein, former Detroit Lions teammate Quandre Diggs also wrote: “Ty good people too man! Crazy business and heartless so don’t blame us when we about our business and looking out for ourselves.”
Recapping Ty Johnson’s Message to Fans After Surgery, Release From Jets
Johnson was released unexpectedly on April 26 after originally re-signing with the Jets on March 23. It’s not shocking to see a depth player earn a new contract, only to get cut later on — in fact, we just saw it happen to NYJ offensive tackle Cedric Ogbuehi on May 11 — but something did feel a bit fishy in Johnson’s case.
His mysterious “non-football injury” tag, plus the fact that Johnson appeared in all 17 games in 2022 as a core special teamer, helped create that vibe. The video confirmed most suspicions.
“So, over the past few months I’ve been trying to learn my laws of the universe, the 12 laws,” a dejected Johnson told viewers after plunging into an ice bath recovery session. “And going through this process of recovering from surgery — I tore my pec, full sternal tear — if we except what’s going on and we know we have the ability to change it, then everything’s going to be alright.”
He went on: “It’s like a circle. Something happens, can I change it? Then, don’t worry. I can’t change it? Then, don’t worry. It’s a full cycle, man. Understanding my emotions and how to regulate my emotions through this process — because I’ve had some dark days. Dark, dark days, man.”
“Obviously, went to New York,” Johnson continued, getting into the details of his release. “Told them [about the injury]. I told them even before this, I was like — ‘hey, was working out, [the torn pectoral] happened’ — saw the team doctor, he was like — ‘you need to get it fixed.’ Flew out the next day [to get surgery]. Came back happy that I got it done, even though I didn’t want to get it done. That following Wednesday, ‘you’re outta there.'”
“I was like, damn,” Johnson voiced in disbelief, regarding the decision to cut him. “But at the end of the day, I know I’m going to be alright, I know God got my back. And just keep going forward, man. That’s my little ice barrel talk of the day.”
The Instagram reel’s caption also read: “Run Your Race At Your Pace. The end goal isn’t Be All, End All. It’s the continuous desire to grow every day. Everything happens for you. Show the Gratitude for the life you live, the life that you have. It can always be worse and anything I’ve learned from this recovery process is the unwavering belief in myself and my abilities. Came home for camp Saturday, and thought this was a great opportunity to test out my new @icebarrel Appreciate y’all listening to my rant.”
Jets Teammates Comment on Ty Johnson’s Instagram Confessional
As mentioned above, several Jets teammates reacted to Johnson’s candid social media confessional in the comment section of his post.
“Real spill 💯🤝🏽,” wrote NYJ defensive back Michael Carter II.
Fellow core special teamer Ashtyn Davis just posted a “🖤” emoji while fellow RB Zonovan Knight sent a “🫶🏾.”
“Keep going bro🫱🏾🫲🏽,” pass rusher Bryce Huff said in encouragement.
And finally, former Jets teammate Kai Nacua replied with a “🫀” emoji, which represents the heart organ and some pretty clear symbolism.
To be clear, the Jets didn’t do anything that was against the rules here. Cuts like this happen all the time around the NFL and Johnson’s just the latest athlete to suffer the fate of an ill-timed offseason injury. Having said that, this story does remind us once again just how cold this billion-dollar industry can be on its players — especially the ones that never make it big.
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Jets Veteran Starter Takes Aim at ‘Off-Site Injuries’ After Ty Johnson News