Return timetables revealed for Mekhi Becton, Brandin Echols
At his Monday press conference following Week 10’s blowout loss to the Bills, New York Jets head coach Robert Saleh announced injury updates for two young players: left tackle Mekhi Becton and rookie cornerback Brandin Echols.
Echols suffered a quad injury during the Jets’ loss to Buffalo. He is projected to miss three to five weeks.
Javelin Guidry replaced Echols following his exit against the Bills. Undrafted rookie cornerback Isaiah Dunn played one snap. The Jets also activated fifth-round rookie cornerback Jason Pinnock from the reserve/COVID-19 list on Monday.
A sixth-round pick in this year’s draft, Echols has been starting at right cornerback opposite Bryce Hall throughout the season and has mostly held his own. He is part of a young and inexperienced cornerback room that came out with a hot start early in the season but has taken a step back over the past few weeks.
The Jets will hope Echols can replicate some of his early-season success when he returns. Echols allowed only eight completions on 12 targets for 85 yards over the first three weeks of the season. He would not allow a touchdown until Week 8 against the Cincinnati Bengals.
However, Echols has had some rough games recently, giving up 83 yards against the Patriots in Week 7 and a season-high 90 yards against the Bills prior to leaving the game.
After exiting the season-opener with a knee injury, Becton is still one to three weeks away from practicing, per Saleh. Becton was originally projected to be down for six to eight weeks, but he will be out longer than expected.
Injuries continue to pile up for this Jets team as the season progresses. They will have to keep the “next man up” mentality alive as the Miami Dolphins come to town on Sunday, fresh off of a Thursday-night upset against the Baltimore Ravens.
