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The New York Jets’ Week 16 injury updates started to fly in on December 19 ahead of a short week that will culminate on Thursday Night Football — and there were a lot of them.
Within were some positives and negatives from head coach Robert Saleh this morning but chief among them were updates on defensive tackle Quinnen Williams and quarterback Mike White. The latter is “still going through evaluation” for fractured ribs, according to Saleh, and Williams’ “arrow’s [pointing] up.”
The Jets HC added that they are “hoping to get [Williams] out there on Thursday.”
Jets Get Optimistic Injury Update on Quinnen Williams
As you’d expect, there were some follow-up questions on White and Williams. First up was the quarterback — as reporters wondered whether or not he would start if he’s healthy.
“We’ll get the clearance first,” Saleh dismissed, “that’s something I’ve got to talk to the offensive staff about. We’ll see what happens, I’m not prepared to answer that one.”
“There was talk [from certain doctors] that they felt like a week could show some healing — a callus, if you will, that would allow him to get on the field,” he admitted, while also giving the disclaimer that both his doctors and Jets team doctors would have to still sign off on something like that.
White will participate in the initial walk-throughs, per Saleh, but they’ll also have Wilson taking a lot of those QB1 reps during Jags week.
As for Williams, Saleh called it “wishful thinking that [the D-tackle would] be able to wake up on Sunday and be ready to roll,” but did add an encouraging note. “We feel very optimistic about Thursday,” he voiced. “Obviously, he’s gotta do a couple of things but he’s better than 50-50 today.”
You might remember that Williams was considered 50-50 last week, which led New York Post reporter Brian Costello to tweet his opinion that it “sounds like they think Quinnen Williams will play Thursday.”
The defense wasn’t bad against the Detroit Lions, but it did falter when the Jets needed it most. The pass rush was also nonexistent for the majority of the outing, and that should definitely change for the better if Williams can suit up versus Jacksonville.
White on the other hand sounds doubtful, which was always the expectation after it was announced that he fractured his ribs. Saleh did state that “once you get drafted, it doesn’t matter who was [selected higher]” when talking about the quarterback conversation moving forward. “That will never change [under his regime],” he reiterated.
Corey Davis Could Return, Denzel Mims & Jeff Smith Ailing
Saleh also listed the remaining NYJ injuries, and it was a mouthful from the Jets HC.
He detailed: “On offense, [wide receiver] Jeff Smith — who did not finish the game — he’ll be questionable for [Week 16]. [Denzel] Mims is in the concussion protocol, he’s most likely going to be out. [Running back] Zonovan Knight will also be questionable but his arrow is pointing up — he’s dealing with an ankle. Corey Davis, we feel very confident that he should be able to roll on Thursday… [safety Lamarcus] Joyner will be questionable and then [cornerback Brandin] Echols will be out.”
From this group, Davis, Joyner and Echols all missed this weekend’s matchup with the Lions while Mims, Smith and Knight suffered new injuries on Sunday. It sounds like Echols (guaranteed) and Joyner are the players who are most likely to miss two straight games.
On the plus side, the Jets top veteran at wide receiver should make a return on TNF according to Saleh. Especially if Zach Wilson is out there, Davis would be a huge help on the football field both in the passing game and the rushing attack. He’s one of the team’s best run-blockers and he could also act as a safety net for whomever the quarterback is on third downs.
If Smith and Mims both can’t go this week, it’ll be interesting to see if the Jets elevate an extra wide receiver like rookie Irvin Charles or veteran Diontae Spencer. To this point, neither has appeared in a game for the Jets this season.
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