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Rich Cimini
New York Jets wide receiver Garrett Wilson is expected to miss at least three to four weeks with a right knee sprain, a source told ESPN on Monday.
Wilson returned to action Sunday after missing two games with an injury to the same knee, and he went down again in the third quarter of the Jets’ 27-20 win over the Cleveland Browns. He underwent imaging tests Monday. He won’t require surgery, the source said.
It’s a significant blow to the Jets’ offense, which managed only 169 total yards in the win, including only 42 net passing yards. The Jets (2-7), winners of two straight, face the first-place New England Patriots (8-2) on Thursday night at Gillette Stadium.
Earlier Monday, coach Aaron Glenn confirmed the imagining tests, but he was noncommittal on Wilson’s playing status.
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The injury happened on a contested long pass by Justin Fields, an incompletion. Wilson slid on the damp turf in a sitting position, with both legs under him. He got up quickly and started to jog back to the huddle, but he began to limp and went to the sideline. He spent some time on an exercise bike before going to the locker room.
Glenn said not to read anything into that.
«I want to see exactly what the docs say before I stamp anything as far as that, but usually when you have that situation, adrenaline is going during the game. But after the game, everything kind of slows down. Again, I want to see what the docs say.»
The Jets already are down one receiver, Josh Reynolds (hip), who is on injured reserve. Without Wilson and Reynolds, their top receivers would be rookie Arian Smith, Tyler Johnson, Isaiah Williams and John Metchie III, who made his Jets debut Sunday after being acquired in a trade with the Philadelphia Eagles.
Former Indianapolis Colts receiver, Adonai Mitchell, acquired in last week’s trade for cornerback Sauce Gardner, should be ready to go Thursday night. He didn’t play Sunday after having only three days of practice with the team. The Jets also have Allen Lazard, a healthy scratch against the Browns.
On Sunday, Wilson was targeted only twice and was held without a catch for the first time in his career. He reached 1,000 receiving yards in each of his first three seasons, but that streak is in jeopardy. In seven games, he has 395 yards on 36 receptions, with four touchdowns.
Wilson’s absence would increase the challenge for Fields, the presumptive starter. For the third straight game, Glenn is refusing to name his starter.
«Please don’t ask me anything about the quarterbacks,» Glenn said at the start of his Monday videoconference with reporters. «You know I’m not going to tell you, and I don’t want to waste my time when it comes to that, when it comes to who’s starting.»
Fields completed only six of 11 passes for 54 yards Sunday, with one touchdown and one interception.
