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New York Jets quarterback Justin Fields was carted from the practice field Thursday morning with a toe injury.
Fields threw an incomplete pass to Jeremy Ruckert on his fifth play of team drills when he went down. The quarterback, in his first season with the Jets, sat on the grass for a few moments before getting up and limping to the sideline while helped by a trainer.
Coach Aaron Glenn said the injury was to Fields’ right foot, but had no immediate information on the nature or severity.
“I know it was a quick throw, so I’m assuming someone stepped on his toe,” Glenn said after the Jets’ second practice of training camp. “It had to be because of the nature of the call that we had as far as offensive play call. I want to look at the tape and be sure.”
Fields spent a few minutes in the injury tent on the sideline as trainers examined him before a cart came out to transport him into the facility. Fields sat in the passenger seat next to the driver in the cart and then got up under his own power before stepping inside to be further evaluated.
Glenn stopped the team period after Fields was hurt and the Jets ran special teams drills.
“When anybody goes down, there’s a lump in my throat,” Glenn said. “Listen, I hate injuries for any player, but the thing is I want to make sure that I understand exactly what the injury is before I move forward on my thought process.”
Fields signed a two-year, $40m contract as a free agent in March after playing last season in Pittsburgh and is expected to be New York’s starter this season. Veteran Tyrod Taylor, the team’s oldest player who turns 36 next month, is the backup and replaced Fields in team drills.
“I think the most important part is, if anything does happen to Justin, I don’t think there’s any drop-off as far as what we want to do when it comes to play calls,” Glenn said. “Very similar when you talk about skill set, so that was like enticing for us. And then the leadership ability … you could just tell the players really gravitate to him. When he says something, everybody really listens, even the coaching staff. He’s been around this league a long time. He knows what it takes to win, and he’s a really good person. So, we’re all excited to have that guy here.
“Listen, Justin is who he is and if something happens to him, we’ve got Tyrod and we’re ready to go.”
New York also has Adrian Martinez, the 2024 United Football League MVP, and rookie Brady Cook on its roster, but neither has thrown a pass in an NFL game. Glenn noted that Martinez was in camp with the Lions in 2023, so he has some familiarity with the offense that the Jets are running with Tanner Engstrand, Detroit’s former passing game coordinator.
But if Fields is sidelined for a significant amount of time, the Jets could be in the market for an experienced quarterback.
The news of Fields’ injury sent Jets fans into a frenzy on social media, with many recalling how Aaron Rodgers’ torn achilles tendon in the team’s opening game in 2023 sunk their Super Bowl hopes and how Zach Wilson missed time early in the 2022 season with a knee injury.
Glenn urged fans to remain calm because “I’ve been there and done that” – referring to how he adjusted to various injuries in Detroit last season as the Lions’ defensive coordinator – and it’s still early in training camp.
“I understand how this league is and I understand how social media starts to take over and everybody starts to panic,” Glenn said. “The one thing I would say is, listen, we have a number of men in that locker room that want to win. And we have a number of men in the locker room that’s learning how to win and it’s my job to make sure that I push that over the edge. And that’s my plan.”
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