Trayanum hospitalized after scary hit in Jets' finale
Chip Trayanum's first NFL touchdown turned into a trip to the hospital in the Jets' 23-6 preseason-ending loss to the Giants, with the team saying he's awake, alert and moving his extremities.
Chip Trayanum hospitalized after a scary hit to close the half
Chip Trayanum's night was building toward something before it turned scary. With 10 seconds left in the first half, the undrafted rookie running back took a handoff from Cade Klubnik and was immediately drilled by Giants linebacker Trace Ford, and he had to be carted off MetLife Stadium on a backboard, neck brace on, per Jets Rookie RB Chip Trayanum Hospitalized With Neck Injury.
Jets say RB Chip Trayanum is on the way to the hospital due to a neck injury. He is awake, alert and has movement of his extremities.
The team's own account confirmed he was on the way to a hospital with a neck injury but said he was awake, alert and had movement in all his extremities. Coach Aaron Glenn didn't hedge afterward: "I think he'll be just fine. He'll be just fine."
Before the hit, Trayanum — a Toledo product who signed as an undrafted free agent — had 38 yards on 12 carries and had just scored his first NFL touchdown, the kind of night that was building a real roster case in a crowded backfield. That push is on pause until the Jets know more.
Jets close the preseason 1-2 with a 23-6 finale loss to the Giants
Friday night's 23-6 loss to the Giants finished the exhibition slate at 1-2 in the preseason, a shutout of the Steelers sandwiched between losses to Tampa Bay and New York. With Geno Smith held out entirely, Cade Klubnik got the extended look against the Giants' starters and struggled: 6 of 13 passing for 59 yards, no touchdowns, one interception, and a scoreless carry to go with it.
Giants6-23
Steelers17-0
Buccaneers16-24The best thing about the night belonged to the defense. Marcelino McCrary-Ball, the Jets' special-teams captain trying to prove he's more than a phases-only player, turned in a pick, a fumble recovery, a tackle for loss, a pass breakup and nine total tackles — the kind of line that gets a bubble guy a longer look before Sunday's cuts.
Marcelino McCrary-Ball(ed out) pick, fumble recovery, TFL, PD and 9 total tackles all in a day's work 🤧 t.co/4pzMf7foJN
It wasn't clean up front, either. Joseph Ossai (foot) and Anez Cooper (shoulder) were both ruled out during the game, and Jason Sanders missed two kicks in what amounted to the team's final dress rehearsal, prompting the Jets to say afterward they'll evaluate their kicking options, per Pro Football Talk.
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The Jets have to get to 53 by Sunday at 6 p.m., and the backup quarterback race isn't really a race anymore. Klubnik's fast start through camp has left veteran Bailey Zappe "sweating for the job," as Yahoo Sports put it, and ESPN's Rich Cimini's latest 53-man projection lists just two quarterbacks — Smith and Klubnik — though Cimini notes the Jets "can't rule out an incoming vet" before the roster is finalized.
My updated #Jets 53: QB: Smith, Klubnik (can't rule out an incoming vet) RB: Hall, Allen, Davis, Nwangwu WR: Wilson, Mitchell, Cooper, Williams, Patrick, Smith TE: Taylor, Ruckert, Sadiq, Woods OL: Fashanu, Parham, Myers, Tippmann, Membou, Mitchell, Newman, Okorafor, Cooper (IR candidate; need IOL depth) DL: Phillips, Sweat, Onyemata, Briggs, Jackson ED: Bailey, Enagbare, Ossai, McDonald LB: Davis
Kicker is the spot that's actually unsettled. After Sanders missed two kicks in the finale, the Jets said they'll open up the kicking competition, a real question mark on a roster that otherwise looks close to set. Glenn, for his part, called cutdown weekend "always the toughest part of the year for any coach," per the team's own site — a line that tracks with a roster this deep at running back and receiver after Friday's cuts to come.
A reunion with Robert Saleh opens the regular season in Nashville
Sunday afternoon in Tennessee doubles as something more than a season opener: Robert Saleh, the Jets' own head coach from 2021 through 2024, will be on the other sideline for the first time, hired by Tennessee in January after a year as San Francisco's defensive coordinator. He's brought some familiar faces with him, too, having kept adding former Jets defenders since taking over.
The Titans he's building are still finding their footing behind second-year quarterback Cam Ward, who completed just 5 of 12 passes for 57 yards in Tennessee's preseason opener before the club righted itself; new offensive coordinator Brian Daboll has said the Week 1 offense will look different than anything shown in exhibition play, per NFL.com. Per the payload, the Titans enter 2-0 in the preseason and off a 19-16 win over the Seahawks.
The number: Tennessee opened as 2.5-point favorites, with the total set at 38.5 — a low-scoring read for a game where the Jets' own quarterback situation and the Titans' still-developing passing attack are both very much works in progress. Kickoff is Sunday, September 13 at noon at Nissan Stadium.