The injury bug continues to play a major role in the 2021 season for the New York Jets.
On Sunday they got their tuchus handed to them by a divisional foe in the Buffalo Bills by a 45-17 score. If that wasn’t bad enough they suffered another key injury to their secondary.
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Another Brutal Loss for the Backend of the Defense
At the beginning of his Monday presser, Jets head coach Robert Saleh started off with an injury report and had some tough news to share.
Gang Green rookie cornerback Brandin Echols will miss anywhere from three to five weeks with a quad injury.
That means he is likely headed for injured reserve, when the Jets place him there he will have to miss a minimum of three games, but it could be even more and if this initial diagnosis is correct he will assuredly miss more.
That move will provide the Jets with maximum roster flexibility and that is incredibly important with the slew of injuries they’ve had, especially in the secondary.
Coach Saleh says CB Brandin Echols will miss 3-5 weeks with a quad injury.
Echols was a day three dart throw by the Jets front office this past spring. He was the No. 200 overall pick in the sixth round of the 2021 NFL draft out of Kentucky.
Despite his humble beginnings, the youngster earned a starting gig and held down the fort for the first nine games of this season.
In those contests, Echols tallied four pass deflections, 41 combined tackles, and showed some real chutzpah.
He wasn’t perfect by any means, this past weekend prior to his injury he got baptized a few times by Buffalo Bills wide receiver Stefon Diggs, but you have to love what you’ve seen from a sixth-round pick.
Most late-round picks don’t even make an NFL roster let alone contribute to this level. The future is bright for Echols as a rotational corner at worst in this scheme.
Some Interesting in-House Replacements
This is another tough loss for the secondary. Every NFL team deals with injuries, but it just seems like the Jets have been snake bitten this year.
With Echols down, instead of going outside the organization, they should look within.
One player that makes sense is fellow rookie Jason Pinnock. The Jets just activated him off of the COVID list and he should be available for the game this week versus the Miami Dolphins
The 22-year-old out of Pittsburgh has only played sparingly so far this year. He has suited up in five games but has only played two defensive snaps all season.
Pinnock is a big-time Darrelle Revis fan, if you couldn’t tell from his position and his alma mater. He hasn’t proven to be quite as spectacular, but his college tape is very home run or strikeout. He is a swing for the fences player that gambles a lot and that leads to some interceptions, but also some blown coverages.
One other player I’d love to see get more opportunities is undrafted free agent Isaiah Dunn.
In limited opportunities, this season (four snaps) teams have thrown at him twice and he has two pass breakups, per Michael Nania of Jets X-Factor. He also showed a lot of pop throughout the offseason and now is a better time than any to see what he has in the tank.
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Jets Rookie Likely Headed to IR, Darrelle Revis Fan Gets Chance to Shine