Tag: lamarcus joyner

10 free agent/practice squad safeties Broncos could sign after Kareem Jackson suspension

With Kareem Jackson suspended and P.J. Locke injured, the Broncos should add more depth at safety this week.

After losing Kareem Jackson to a suspension for the second time this season, the Denver Broncos are suddenly thin at safety.

P.J. Locke filled in at strong safety during Jackson’s two-game suspension earlier this year, but Locke is now dealing with an ankle injury. Even if Locke is able to play against the Cleveland Browns on Sunday, the Broncos will want to add more depth at the position.

Delarrin Turner-Yell has been good on special teams this season, but he’s been a huge liability in the secondary. Denver can’t afford to lean on Turner-Yell if Locke misses any games during Jackson’s suspension, and rookie JL Skinner has been inactive for all but one game this year.

To add more depth at safety, the Broncos should look to the free agent market. In addition to considering street free agents, Denver could also sign a player off another team’s practice squad. Here’s a quick list of 10 safeties the Broncos might consider signing.

Report: Lamarcus Joyner out vs. Lions

Lamarcus Joyner out

Per Connor Hughes of SNY, safety Lamarcus Joyner (hip) is out for Sunday’s game against the Detroit Lions.

Joyner was a late add to the injury report Saturday and was designated as questionable. He was working out with members of the conditioning staff Sunday morning and was seemingly a game-time decision. The decision has been made. He will not play.

Ashtyn Davis could step in as the starter in Joyner’s place with Will Parks and Tony Adams as the reserves.

Joyner joins Corey Davis (concussion), Brandin Echols (quad) and Mike Whtie (ribs) as players that have been ruled out for Sunday’s game.

Jets giving Lamarcus Joyner another 1-year deal

Lamarcus Joyner and the Jets are running it back.

Lamarcus Joyner and the Jets are running it back.

The veteran safety is re-signing with New York, his agent told ESPN’s Adam Schefter. Joyner will ink a one-year deal.

Joyner joined Gang Green on a one-year, $3 million contract last offseason, but his debut season with the Jets came to a premature end. He suffered a torn triceps injury 11 snaps into New York’s Week 1 loss to the Panthers, thus ending his season.

Joyner spent five seasons with the Rams and two with the Raiders before becoming a Jet. He struggled in a nickel corner role in his final season with the Raiders, but the plan was for him to be one of New York’s starting safeties last year. The 31-year-old could get that opportunity again in 2022, as the Jets’ depth at the position is currently limited with fellow 2021 starter and injury victim Marcus Maye heading for free agency.

Joyner has 421 tackles, 33 defended passes and five sacks in 96 career games. He has made 59 starts since entering the league as a second-round pick in 2014.

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4 things to know about new Jets CB Rachad Wildgoose

Get to know new Jets cornerback Rachad Wildgoose.

The Jets secondary has been ravaged by injuries this season. Lamarcus Joyner was lost for the season in Week 1, while Marcus Maye suffered a season-ending torn Achilles injury against the Colts in Week 9.

The unit’s woes worsened against the Bills, as Brandin Echols suffered a quad injury that is expected to keep him out for 3-5 weeks. In an effort to mitigate the loss of the rookie starter, New York signed Rachad Wildgoose to its active roster on Wednesday.

Here are four things to know about the Jets’ newest cornerback.

Robert Saleh has faith in Jets’ decimated safety group

The Jets have been rocked by injuries at safety, but Robert Saleh is confident in Ashtyn Davis, Jarrod Wilson and Sharrod Neasman.

Jets safeties have been rocked by injuries this season.

New York has lost both its starters, Lamarcus Joyner and Marcus Maye, to season-ending injuries and has rotated a bevy of safeties throughout the lineup. Robert Saleh isn’t worried about the team’s lack of continuity and experience at the position, though. He expressed confidence in the three active safeties on the roster: Jarrod Wilson, Sharrod Neasman and second-year pro Ashtyn Davis.

The team also added 2020 UDFA Elijah Riley this week.

“That safety position has taken quite the hit in terms of just the amount of players that’ve come through there,” Saleh said Wednesday, adding that he hopes a few games together will lead to improved play.

Saleh and defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich need to figure out what to do with the team’s depth chart quickly, though. The Jets allow 274.9 passing yards per game, which ranks fourth-most in the league. They have allowed 38 passing plays of at least 20 yards, which ranks second.

“Is it a challenge? Yeah,” Saleh added. “But do we have faith in our guys? Absolutely.”

Davis will likely step into the biggest role after Maye’s injury. The 2020 third-round pick is New York’s longest-tenured, active safety. He’s taking his development “week-to-week” after returning from an injury of his own in Week 4. He echoed Saleh, praising his fellow safeties but acknowledging they need more time together.

“We got guys who can play in our room,” he said Wednesday. “It’s just about building cohesiveness amongst us, getting reps in practice, getting the communication together and making sure we’re on the same page.”

That may be easier said than done. Between the safeties and cornerbacks, the Jets have an incredibly young and inexperienced secondary. Davis, Wilson and Neasman have just 561 total snaps this season. Riley’s addition to the safety room will add depth, but he mostly played special teams for the Eagles over the past two seasons.

Davis, despite his own inexperience, took it upon himself to be the leader with Maye and Joyner out.

“I’m going to do whatever I can within my power,” he said. “I’m not going to go outside my body but I’m going to make the plays that I can. I’m not going to try to play Superman, but I’m going to do what I need to do 100 percent.”

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Jets S Lamarcus Joyner likely out for year with elbow injury

The Jets’ safety depth took a major hit after Lamarcus Joyner tore a tendon in his arm. He will require surgery.

Another Jets defensive starter likely suffered a season-ending injury.

Veteran safety Lamarcus Joyner will likely miss the rest of the year after tearing a tendon in his arm, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport. The injury will also require surgery. The 30-year-old Joyner exited New York’s Week 1 loss to the Panthers with an elbow injury after just nine snaps. He signed with the Jets this offseason on a one-year, $3 million deal.

The Jets’ safety depth is already thin after the team put Ashtyn Davis and Sharrod Neasman on injured reserve before the season started. Backup Sheldrick Redwine played for Joyner on Sunday but was benched shortly after giving up two long passes to the Panthers. Practice squad call-up Adrian Colbert and Marcus Maye are the only other safeties on the roster.

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Jets injury report: Mekhi Becton

Jets offensive tackle Mekhi Becton suffered a sprained MCL against the Panthers, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.

Mekhi Becton suffered a potentially serious knee injury in the third quarter of the Jets’ game vs. the Panthers while blocking on Zach Wilson’s 22-yard touchdown pass to Corey Davis.

Becton was helped off the field by trainers before being carted off with a towel over his face and tears in his eyes. Robert Saleh had no further update on Becton’s condition postgame, but NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported that early test results indicate a sprained MCL for New York’s star offensive tackle.

A sprained MCL would be the best-case scenario for Becton and the Jets, as a sprain likely won’t keep him on the shelf for all of 2021. Morgan Moses slid into the lineup at right tackle after Becton’s injury, with George Fant shifting over to left tackle. That will likely be New York’s offensive line alignment in Week 2 assuming Becton cannot suit up.

Saleh did not have an update on Lamarcus Joyner, who departed early in the game with a shoulder injury and did not return. New York also lost Blake Cashman to a hamstring injury, Jamien Sherwood to a foot injury, and Braden Mann to a knee injury after Panthers running back Chuba Hubbard ran into him on his first punt attempt of the game. Mann did not return, leaving Matt Ammendola to handle both kicking and punting duties. Del’Shawn Phillips fared well in relief of Sherwood, leading the Jets in tackles with 12.

Zach Wilson said postgame that his neck was sore after his NFL debut, as he suffered “whiplash” during the game thanks to a putrid offensive line. Wilson’s neck did not impact his performance late in the game, as he bounced back from a rough start to finish 20-37 for 258 yards, two touchdowns and a second-quarter interception.

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Jets sign former Browns S Sheldrick Redwine

The Jets brought in Sheldrick Redwine to backup Marcus Maye and Lamarcus Joyner at safety.

The Jets added a new young defensive back to the roster after signing former Browns safety Sheldrick Redwine, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

Redwine cleared waivers Wednesday after being cut by the Browns on Aug. 31. He played in 17 games for the Browns after being taken in the fourth round of the 2019 draft. He tallied 69 total tackles, one interception, a half-sack and three defended passes during his time in Cleveland. Redwine’s top play was an interpretation off Ben Roethlisberger in the Browns’ 2020 Wild Card win last season.

Redwine will likely be the backup to Marcus Maye and Lamarcus Joyner while Ashtyn Davis recovers from injury. He also tallied 329 snaps on special teams over the past two seasons.

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Jets S Lamarcus Joyner no longer a ‘misfit’ after stint with Raiders

The Jets signed Lamarcus Joyner to be a safety after he felt out of place playing cornerback for the Raiders.

Lamarcus Joyner’s defensive position has ping-ponged between cornerback and safety throughout his seven-year NFL career.

The Rams drafted Joyner as a safety in 2014 but moved him to nickel cornerback for the first three seasons of his career. He switched to free safety under new coach Sean McVay in 2017 and excelled. But when he signed with the Raiders in 2019, the team moved him back to nickel cornerback, where he struggled for two seasons.

“It was a misfit,” he said Wednesday about his role with the Raiders. “But I don’t think I’m trying to turn my career around [in New York]. I think I did everything, to my knowledge, that I wanted to do throughout my career.”

Fortunately for Joyner, the Jets signed him to be a safety this offseason. He’s welcoming the return, as well as an opportunity to play for Robert Saleh.

“I’m so happy to be here with coach Saleh,” Joyner said. “Being that free safety is a natural feel. It makes it easier to come to work every day because that’s where I fit.”

Joyner’s relationship with the nickel cornerback role is complicated. He wasn’t shy about wanting to switch back to safety in 2017 before Rams defensive coordinator Wade Phillips eventually made the change. But Joyner called the nickel back a “natural and instinctual” position for himself when he signed with the Raiders in 2019 and appeared excited to play both positions.  He struggled in the 28 games he played for the team, however.

Joyner won’t have to worry about his role in New York. With a young secondary, the Jets need him as a veteran presence in the defensive backfield alongside Marcus Maye. The safety position plays a large role in the defense the Jets will run under Saleh and defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich – both in coverage and for support against the run.

After thriving as a free safety in 2017 and 2018, the Jets are hoping the 30-year-old Joyner can return to form in New York. He’s shown in training camp that he still possesses a lot of the skills required to shine in the Jets’ defense, but he’ll need to put it all together in the regular season to tie the rest of the Gang Green’s defense together.

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