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New York Jets rookie Israel Abanikanda got the start at running back for the preseason opener against the Cleveland Browns.
He showed some pop scoring the first touchdown of his career and the first touchdown of Gang Green’s preseason. However that hasn’t changed the Jets plans to potentially sign free agent running back Dalvin Cook.
“That’s all independent of one another,” Saleh told me after the game. “What we do with that [Cook] is separate [from] everything else.”
Things Could Heat up Between Jets and Cook
With the Hall of Fame game officially in the rearview mirror, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk said talks “are expected to accelerate” between Cook and the Jets.
Gang Green’s first preseason game was on Thursday August 3. Their next one isn’t until Saturday August 12 when they travel to play the Carolina Panthers.
This mini-break “will give them a little more time to consider the situation, and to implement a plan for getting something done,” per Florio.
Prior to the game, Zack Rosenblatt of The Athletic said the team’s interest in Cook is “obviously real.”
“The running back’s practice visit on Sunday wasn’t a publicity stunt. The Jets would like to sign him, but only at the right price,” Rosenblatt said in a column posted on August 2.
Another sign that things could be creeping closer to a conclusion was some social media activity this week.
Cook posted a photo of himself from when he was visiting Jets training camp on Sunday July 30. Eric Dounn, the Chief Operating Officer of LAA [Cook’s agency], reposted that image with the caption, “it’s coming” on his Instagram story.
While he didn’t exactly say what was coming, the dot connecting would suggest Cook finding a new team is potentially on the horizon.
Izzy to the Hizzy Is Picking up Steam
It does strike me as a little odd that the development and potential emergence of Abanikanda would have no bearing on a Cook decision.
They play the same position, running back. If you could solve the problem with a cheaper, younger option, why wouldn’t you?
However it seems like the Jets are infatuated with the idea of adding a proven talent in Cook who has a track record of success.
Abanikanda wasn’t perfect in the preseason opener, but he showed off that game-changing speed that the offense lacked last year when Breece Hall went down with a torn ACL.
He finished the day with nine carries for 27 yards for only three yards per attempt. Izzy also scored the only touchdown of the day for the Jets.
Hall is likely going to be compromised in some way as he recovers from his injury which leaves the door wide open for Izzy to make an immediate impact as a rookie early in the season.
He clearly isn’t a finished product, but the Jets and most NFL teams like to employ a committee int he backfield. With or without Cook in the lineup, the Jets are going to mix in a variety of bodies throughout the season.
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