FLORHAM PARK, NJ – New York Jets defender Jarrad Davis is expected to miss about two months with a left ankle injury, again for his defense.
Coach Robert Saleh, speaking to reporters Monday, would not specify the nature of Davis’ injury, except to say it is not a high ankle sprain. Saleh said they hoped to get him back “around Goodbye Week,” which is the Jets’ 6th week.
A trip to the wounded reserve seems inevitable. As long as Davis is on the starting list of 53 men after the final reduction on Aug. 31, he will be eligible to return after three weeks in IR.
Davis was loaded into the locker room in Saturday’s 23-14 win over the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field. Two days earlier, in a joint practice with the Packers, defensive end Carl Lawson suffered an Achilles injury at the end of the season.
Lawson and Davis were two of the Jets’ biggest off-season acquisitions on defense. Lawson signed a three-year, $ 45 million contract; Davis, a former Detroit Lions first-round coach, signed $ 5.5 million in a one-year deal.
“I don’t think it’s hard for me as much as it is for them,” Saleh said of Davis and Lawson. “We’ll find out. Someone will step up and keep moving.”
The situation is serious for the defender. The only player shown is central defender CJ Mosley, who has only played two games in the last two seasons due to injuries and an exclusion due to COVID-19.
Rookie Jamien Sherwood, selected in the fifth round, will replace Davis with the strong side in his 4-3 forward. The weakest starter will be Noah Dawkins (15 race matches), who started on Saturday, or the sixth-round pick Hamsah Nasirildeen, who had received first-team representatives on the training ground.
Grouping the concern: Sherwood and Nasirildeen are newcomers in the defensive position. They played safety at Auburn and Florida State, respectively. The Jets drafted them with the idea of turning them into liners for their speed and coverage capacity.
Speaking of Sherwood, Saleh made a loose comparison with San Francisco 49ers All-Pro center-back Fred Warner, whom he addressed from 2018 to 2020. He meant from the point of view of size and change of position.
“I want to make sure I say that right,” Saleh said. “I still don’t compare him to Fred (he has a long way to go), but Fred played nickel in college and maybe had 220, 225 his rookie year. [We] he threw it at Mike’s defender, started it on the first day and took off. “
Saleh called Sherwood an “amazing communicator” with excellent instincts and intelligence. The Jets also have veteran Blake Cashman, an often-injured backup.
The Jets are working on free agent sidelines and are exploring possible operations to get a pass-runner to replace Lawson, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported Sunday. Saleh avoided a question about a possible trade, saying he focused on the list.
“There will always be discussions about staff,” he said.
In other news about injuries, Conor McDermott (knee) is expected to lose significant time. Security quarterback Mike White (ribs), defensive end Ronnie Blair (hamstring), guard Alijah Vera-Tucker (chest stump) and wide receiver Elijah Moore (quadriceps) are the day-to-day.