FLORHAM PARK — It may be too early to tell how good the New York Jets can be in 2023, but that isn’t quelling the excitement within the walls of 1 Jets Drive during the second week of voluntary OTAs – even if not every player will be in attendance.
After a calf injury cost future Hall-of-Fame quarterback Aaron Rodgers practice reps last Tuesday, the team has been monitoring the quarterback’s health since then to make sure he would be ready once mandatory workouts begin.
“He’s fine. He’s just doing a bunch of rehab. He’ll be limited today and then just hoping to ease him back in and hopefully get him full on Friday and into next week,” head coach Robert Saleh said.
Rodgers suffered the strained calf during warmups in which the Jets had him pushing weights around. While his coach has agreed with his previous statements that the injury would not be lingering, it was a good opportunity for the coaching staff to reevaluate the training protocols for their 39-year-old quarterback.
“You’re always trying to educate and learn. We have to do a better job in communicating with the players and where they are at certain points but that was the first tweak of our stretching period,” Saleh explained. “We’re always looking to modify if we need to.”
Saleh may have Rodgers in a limited capacity for Wednesday’s practice, but he’s seen plenty of improvements throughout the rest of the roster as they prepare for the start of the 2023 regular season in three months.
Saleh closes the door on DeAndre Hopkins
For the fans who wanted to see New York bring in three-time All-Pro DeAndre Hopkins, Wednesday morning might have been the clearest example that it wasn’t going to happen.
Saleh was extremely complimentary of the current group of receivers currently on the roster going to far as to say he “loves the group.”
Hopkins was recently released by the Arizona Cardinals and can sign with any team currently. The Kansas City Chiefs and AFC East-rival Buffalo Bills are considered favorites to land the pro-bowl wideout.
Breece Hall Update
After suffering a torn ACL in his rookie season, there had been some small concern that Breece Hall would not be ready for the start of the 2023 regular season. Those concerns aren’t matched by the coaching staff Wednesday morning when Saleh stated he was “optimistic” that the second-round back would be ready for the season-opener.
“He’s one of those kids that we’ve had to hold back. I’m excited for him to get back on the field. I feel like he won’t need to be limited in training camp even though we still want to be conscientious and cautious with him,” Saleh stated.
Hall had topped 22moph on the GPS according to Saleh and is expected to be the Jets lead back going into the season.
