When Mekhi Becton injured his knee in Week 1 towards the Panthers, the consensus was that the beginning left deal with would return in four-to-six weeks.
That did not occur.
Becton ended up lacking the remainder of the season, taking part in in solely 48 snaps all yr.
With every passing week, reporters inquired with head coach Robert Saleh about Becton’s standing. Every week his timeline to return to apply and finally in-game motion was delayed.
So, what precisely occurred with Becton and his harm this previous season?
Permit Mike Garafolo of NFL Community to elucidate:
Boy is he a difference-maker when he’s on and he’s wholesome. However we have not seen that shortly. Solely performed one recreation this yr. Had that knee harm and was anticipated to overlook just a little greater than a month after which simply missed the remainder of the season. It was type of a mysterious deal. This is my understanding in talking to sources accustomed to what occurred right here. He was having points. Clearly the knee didn’t come alongside as shortly as that they had hoped. After which what occurred was, as a result of he wasn’t in a position to do the type of issues that he wanted to do to get into rehab and get again in form, he placed on weight. Weight has been a difficulty with Becton. We knew that coming into the draft, we knew that coming into his NFL profession. That is one thing the place he will should proceed to rehab that knee, he will should get again in form. The Jets are hopeful that he might be again in form, able to go bodily and mentally for the beginning of OTAs, however we’ll see how that goes.
That remark appears to align with Saleh’s updates all through the season along with what common supervisor Joe Douglas needed to say final week.
“Mekhi is a much bigger man and so it took him longer to heal than we initially anticipated,” Douglas advised reporters. “So, it wasn’t actually anybody’s fault and it wasn’t Mekhi’s fault, it wasn’t the physician’s fault, the method turned longer than we initially thought.”
Becton is listed on the crew’s web site at 363 kilos. As Garafolo alluded to, his weight has been a subject of dialog even earlier than New York used the Eleventh total collection of the 2020 draft on the lineman.
Former Jets offensive lineman Damien Woody chimed in on Becton’s weight earlier this offseason as properly, telling Becton he must get in the most effective form of his life with a view to keep on the sector and contribute to his potential.
Odds are the Jets persist with Becton getting into subsequent season, utilizing him as their beginning left deal with, however there are definitely no ensures. New York might roll with George Fant, who did an incredible job filling in on the left facet in Becton’s place. They might additionally change Becton within the draft, focusing on a top-ranked deal with like Evan Neal, Charles Cross or Ikem Ekwonu.
Even with out Becton, the Jets had the Eleventh-ranked offensive line within the NFL this previous season, per PFF.
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