‘That’s going to be a good day for me’: Adam Gase excited for Avery Williamson’s return from knee injury

It will be a good day for Jets head coach Adam Gase when Avery Williamson returns from a knee injury that cost him the 2019 season.

In less than a month’s time, Avery Williamson has gone from expendable to invaluable.

Williamson, who was originally penciled in as one of New York’s starting linebackers last season, is one year removed from a torn ACL suffered while playing with the backups in a meaningless preseason game. As the 28-year-old languished on the sideline, the Jets bolstered their inside linebacker depth, rendering him an inevitable salary cap casualty at some point this offseason until C.J. Mosley decided to opt-out of the 2020 season.

Now, Williamson is New York’s most experienced linebacker and all but a lock to begin the year in the starting lineup. That gives him a chance at redemption. Adam Gase, meanwhile, will be thrilled watching Williamson’s return to the field after his decision to leave the linebacker in that preseason game played a part in Williamson’s season-ending knee injury.

“That’s going to be a good day for me, personally,” Gase recently said. “I know, for him, it’ll be a great day.”

Immediately after Williamson went down, Gase expressed regret for leaving him in so late in a preseason contest. That regret has since turned into happiness and relief as Williamson continues to work his way back into action.

“I was just kind of kicking myself, thinking he should have never been on the field, this should have never happened, we should have had him for the season,” Gase said. “He was great about it, he knew how I felt about it. He focused on getting better. I know he’s excited to get out there. I’m going to be extremely excited to see him going again and seeing where he’s at. I just want to see him get in pads, be able to just start playing football again.”

Williamson still has hurdles to clear before he returns to the field. It will also likely take him a while to get back in the swing of things after spending an entire season on the shelf. Still, this upcoming season could be one of redemption for the veteran linebacker. The Jets certainly need that to be the case in order for their defense to perform at a high clip in 2020.

“Coach Gase has told me many times he hated that it happened, and shoot, I’m over it now,” Williamson, who hopes to be ready for Week 1, said. “At this point, I’m just ready to work, go out there and show that I’m back where I was last year and ready to take the next step to be better than last year.”

4 other times Gregg Williams had to work around losing star defensive players

Jamal Adams is gone and C.J. Mosley opted out of the 2020 season, but Gregg Williams has worked without star defenders before.

Gregg Williams will have another tall order to fill in his second season as Jets defensive coordinator.

Not only did the team trade All-Pro safety Jamal Adams, but star inside linebacker C.J. Mosley also opted out of the 2020 season because of concerns related to the coronavirus pandemic. Williams will once again work with less talent than initially expected only a year after playing most of the season without Mosley and Avery Williamson.

But Williams did well with a limited roster last year. The Jets finished second in run defense and seventh in yards allowed. They went on a 7-2 run at the end of the 2019 season that was largely fueled by the defense.

Williamson, for one, isn’t worried about Williams’ ability to run the defense without his best players. Even as he recovers from his ACL injury, Williamson is confident the defense will perform.

“I hate to see Jamal go and C.J. opt-out, but at the end of the day we’ve still got some talented guys that play those positions,” Williamson said Wednesday. “I feel like Gregg Williams is going to put guys in good positions. He’s just going to coach the hell out of them.”

Adam Gase agreed with the idea that Williams’ coaching won’t falter. He credits Williams’ ability to scheme around a player’s strength and versatility, as well as his ability to create multiple looks on defense.

“The beauty part about what Gregg does on defense is, with the amount of personnel groupings he has, he has a ton of flexibility to give a lot of guys playing time,” Gase said. “I think that will be beneficial to us.”

Williams’ creativity will be his biggest asset this year. His skill as a coach will certainly help, but so will his past experience coaching defenses that lost talented players. Williams has been an NFL coach or coordinator for 22 years, and he’s had to work with less before.

With that in mind, we thought it would be wise to look back at four other times Williams lost his best defensive players for an extended period of time.

Browns LB Christian Kirksey, 2018

Kirksey missed nine games for the Brown in 2018 and was placed on injured reserve for the final six games with a hamstring injury. Williams, recently promoted from defensive coordinator to interim head coach, was now without one of his leading tacklers.

Kirksey had tallied the most tackles by a Browns player over the previous two seasons, but Williams coached around the loss and the Browns actually played well at the end of the season. They went 4-2 behind an energized offense, though their defense actually allowed more points during that stretch than during the 10 weeks before.

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Eagles avoid significant personnel losses after a total of 66 NFL players opt-out prior to the deadline

Eagles only have one player opt-out of the 2020 NFL season

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NFL players had until Thursday, August 6 at 4:00 p.m. ET. to provide written notification to their respective teams on whether they would opt-out of the 2020 NFL season amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Under the amended collective bargaining agreement between the NFL and NFL Players Association, agreed to on July 24, players have the choice to opt-out of the 2020 NFL season with stipends.

With the deadline now passed, the Eagles only had one player opt-out after Marquise Goodwin chose to sit out after the birth of his daughter.

A total of 66 NFL players opted out prior to today’s deadline.

Notable names included Patriots LB Dont’a Hightower, S Patrick Chung and OT Marcus Cannon, Chiefs RB Damien Williams, Broncos OT Ja’Waun James, Bears DT Eddie Goldman and Jets LB C.J. Mosley.

— Field Yates (@FieldYates) August 6, 2020

There were some notable names on the opt-out list and the New England Patriots led all teams with eight players opting out.

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Jets LB Avery Williamson confident he’ll be ready to play Week 1

Avery Williamson is taking it slow in order to get back on the field in time for Week 1 in Buffalo.

Avery Williamson isn’t rushing his way back onto the practice field after rehabbing from the torn ACL that he suffered last preseason. He is, however, planning to play Week 1.

Williamson spoke to the media on Wednesday and said he’s taking a slow approach to getting back onto the field. He added that the Jets have a plan for him to be ready in time for Week 1 against the Bills and he’s confident that will be the case.

“As long as I’m ready for the season — which I know I will be — that’s all that matters,” Williamson said.

Adam Gase also talked to the media about Williamson’s health. He said Williamson “isn’t too far away” from being cleared by the Jets’ medical staff.

Williamson could have been a cap casualty this offseason. However, with C.J. Mosley opting out because of COVID-19, Williamson will be the veteran leader of the Jets’ linebacking group. He’ll still have to prove that he can play at high level during training camp and earn the starting job at middle linebacker, though.

Williamson had his best season in his first year with the Jets in 2018. Williamson had a career-high 116 tackles to go along with three sacks, six pass defenses and one interception. Obviously, he and the Jets are hoping he can return to that level of production after a devastating injury.

Adam Gase talks C.J. Mosley, Le’Veon Bell and more with Jets training camp in full swing

Jets head coach Adam Gase spoke with reporters via conference call on Wednesday. Here’s what he had to say.

The Jets have yet to take the practice field this summer, but with the “acclimation period”, which consists of strength and conditioning, underway, training camp is essentially in full swing at One Jets Drive.

It has been an eventful last week and a half for head coach Adam Gase, as New York’s roster has endured a good amount of turnover. Jamal Adams is off to Seattle, while C.J. Mosley decided to opt-out of the 2020 season because of family health-related COVID-19 concerns. Brian Winters, Quincy Enunwa and Trenton Cannon are also no longer with the organization, as the three were handed their walking papers to kick off the second week of camp.

On Wednesday, Gase spoke with reporters via conference call, addressing the Jets’ recent string of transactions, how they could go about replacing Mosley, Le’Veon Bell’s motivation to succeed this upcoming season, and much more.

Here are the biggest takeaways from Gase’s most recent chat with the media.

Better now than later

Adam Gase never wanted to lose Jamal Adams and C.J. Mosley. The two were key cogs in Gregg Williams’ defense and crucial to the Jets’ ability to compete in 2020. However, the way New York’s second-year head coach sees it, it’s better that the two players departed now as opposed to in the middle of the season.

When speaking with reporters, Gase noted that losing Adams and Mosley in the early parts of training camp is semi-helpful, as it gives the Jets time to adjust to life without them. Had Adams and Mosley departed mid-season, New York would have had to build a new defensive scheme on the fly, which is an extremely tough task for any defensive coordinator — even the veteran Williams.

The Jets have a month to build their defense without two key parts. It’s not going to be easy, but at least they will have time to work out the kinks before Week 1 rolls around.

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Jets’ Leo Koloamatangi explains why he opted out of 2020 NFL season

Koloamatangi believes the risk of exposure to COVID-19 by playing football is too high to play this season.

More than 50 players have already opted out of the 2020 season because of the coronavirus pandemic. Among those are Jets linebacker C.J. Mosley and reserve lineman Leo Koloamatangi. Mosley already explained why he opted out of the season, but now Koloamatangi has given his reasoning: he doesn’t want to risk exposing his family.

Koloamatangi understands first-hand the effects of the virus. He told KITV4 in Hawaii that he lost two “close” relatives to COVID-19 and doesn’t want to potentially bring the virus back to the rest of the family, including his infant daughter. He offered a damning indictment on the NFL’s decision to continue the season as scheduled, too.

“As athletes, we all accept if I go out there and play, we’re going to at some point contract the virus,” Koloamatangi said.

There have been 56 positive COVID-19 player cases since training camps opened up, and 106 total positive cases throughout this offseason. Many more players have been added to the league’s Reserve/COVID-19 list, which is for anyone who’s either contracted the virus or been in close contact with a positive case. Four Jets players – Bryce Hall, Shyheim Carter, Ahmad Gooden and James Burgess – have been added.

During the pandemic, Koloamatangi has tried to do his part to help in Hawaii, the state where he went to college. Koloamatangi and three others helped launch a website in March that collects information on symptoms, location, risk factors and other data provided by users. That data is then confidentially shared with healthcare officials in the area.

“We’re hoping to be a part of that movement, we’re hoping to help whoever we can — if it’s one, if it’s a thousand, it doesn’t matter,” Koloamatangi said in March. “It’s just being able to be there in times of crisis like this.”

Jets LB James Burgess lands on Reserve/COVID-19 list

The Jets have placed James Burgess on the Reserve/COVID-19 list.

The New York Jets have added another player to the Reserve/COVID-19 list.

According to Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer, Jets linebacker James Burgess has landed on the Reserve/Covid-19 list. The Jets had already placed Bryce Hall, Shyheim Carter and Ahmad Gooden on the list.

Being placed on the list doesn’t necessarily mean Burgess contracted COVID-19. He could’ve just been exposed to someone with the virus. Burgess can be removed from the Reserve/COVID-19 list once he clears the protocols set by the NFL and NFLPA. For now, Burgess is technically not on the Jets’ active roster, so the Jets can sign someone in his place if they so choose.

Burgess played well in the 10 games he started in 2019. He recorded 80 total tackles, one safety, five pass defenses, one interception and one fumble recovery. Burgess could see plenty of playing time in 2020 with C.J. Mosley opting out due to COVID-19 concerns.

Jets LB C.J. Mosley explains why he opted out of 2020 NFL season

A few days after it was reported that C.J. Mosley was opting out of the 2020 NFL season, the Jets linebacker has explained his decision.

A few days after it was reported that C.J. Mosley was opting out of the 2020 season due to family health concerns amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the Jets linebacker has explained his decision.

Mosley spoke about the choice Monday while participating in a Facebook Live event aimed at raising money for the Wounded Warrior Project. Mosley, who has a young son at home, told the Jets he was sitting out the season over the weekend.

“That’s probably the biggest football decision I’ve made in a long time, probably since I picked what college I’m going to,” Mosley said. “That’s a book I got to start writing pretty soon. What’s the next step? Because there’s a lot of negative things people been saying as far as me not playing two years. And there’s a lot of positive things that are being said.

“I’m out all year so I have all this time to mentally get better, to physically get better, kind of readjust and kind of find that flame again.”

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The Jets placed Mosley on the Reserve/Opt-Out List on Monday.

This upcoming season was supposed to be Mosley’s second in New York, but his contract will instead be pushed back a year. Mosley signed a five-year, $85 million deal with Gang Green two offseasons ago, but he played in just parts of two games during his first season with the Jets due to a lingering groin injury.

Now, with the NFL attempting to play through a global pandemic, Mosley is stepping away. His focus will be on keeping his family safe and returning to the sport in 2021.

“Because of COVID, my family is my support system with my son. I didn’t want to risk that obviously,” Mosley said. “Just looking at the big picture, for me, I want to make sure I’m mentally and physically the best person I can be so I can be that leader I know I can be.

“It’s a full-team sport. Sometimes people got to better on their own. We’re in a different situation, but I’ve got to look out for my family. Sometimes you got to make that small sacrifice. That’s something you might not understand right now but when you come out on top everybody’s going to be on your side cheering for you.”

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Jets’ 53-man roster prediction 3.0: C.J. Mosley’s opt-out, other moves shake things up

Jets Wire takes its latest crack at projecting New York’s 53-man 2020 roster following C.J. Mosley’s opt-out and multiple other cuts.

The Jets’ roster has endured a good amount of turnover throughout the last couple of days.

On Saturday, linebacker C.J. Mosley opted out of the 2020 season because of family health-related COVID-19 concerns. Sunday brought about the release of veteran offensive lineman Brian Winters, while wide receiver Quincy Enunwa, running back Trenton Cannon, offensive lineman Ben Braden and outside linebacker Wyatt Ray were shown the door on Monday.

New York’s recent string of transactions not only shake up the depth chart, but also change the outlook of who breaks training camp with the team. With that being said, let’s get into Jets Wire’s latest crack at predicting Gang Green’s 53-man roster.

A reminder: italics signify new arrivals and/or changes from the previous prediction. You can click on previous predictions below as the summer progresses.

Predictions 1.0 – Post-NFL Draft | Predictions 2.0 – The Jamal Adams trade

Quarterback (3)

Starter: Sam Darnold

Backups: David Fales, James Morgan

Cut: Mike White

Nothing new to see here, as the makeup of the Jets’ quarterback room entering the regular season is essentially set in stone. Joe Flacco, remember, won’t be ready for the start of the season. The only question surrounding the group at this point is who could wind up as New York’s designated “quarantine quarterback.”

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Jets salary cap update: Brian Winters’ release frees more space for New York

Jets Wire takes a look at New York’s updated salary cap situation following offensive lineman Brian Winters’ release.

The Jets continued to stack up salary cap space with the release of veteran offensive lineman Brian Winters on Sunday.

Winters was a long-anticipated cap casualty after general manager Joe Douglas spent the offseason revamping New York’s offensive line. With the additions of Mekhi Becton, Cameron Clark, Josh Andrews, George Fant, Connor McGovern and Greg Van Roten, as well as the re-signing of Alex Lewis, Winters’ services were no longer required at One Jets Drive.

With Winters no longer in the picture, the Jets now have an additional $7.28 million in salary cap space, according to the Daily News’ Manish Mehta. His release does not bring any dead money against New York’s cap since he had only one year remaining on his contract.

Winters’ departure comes in the wake of C.J. Mosley’s decision to opt-out of the 2020 season because of COVID-19-related family health concerns. Since Mosley voluntarily opted out, he’ll either receive a $350,000 stipend if he’s considered medically higher-risk or a $150,000 salary advance.

According to Over The Cap, Mosley was supposed to have a 2020 cap hit of $17.5 million, but it will now be $10 million, which was his roster bonus. In 2021, Mosley’s cap hit will either be $7.5 million or $7.35 million depending on if he receives the aforementioned $350,000 or $150,000. So the Jets will have more cap space in 2021 because of that, though it remains to be seen what the NFL salary cap will be next season as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

What the Jets decide to do with their newfound additional salary cap space remains to be seen. Carrying any unused salary cap space into 2021 might not be a flashy move, but Douglas is not one to actively pursue splashes — especially at the expense of New York’s financial flexibility. If Douglas and the Jets decide to save their unused cap space for 2021, that extra money will come in handy once free agency rolls around next March.