It’s hard not to ruminate over what could have been.
Garrett Wilson and Breece Hall, two of the faces of the Jets franchise, have hardly spent any time on the field together this season. Wilson is expected to be cleared from the concussion protocol, coach Aaron Glenn said Friday, and be available for Sunday’s game against the Bills at MetLife Stadium.
He is listed as questionable but was a full participant in Friday’s practice. It would be the first time the Jets have both Wilson and Hall since their Week 3 loss to the Lions on Sept. 27.
Another Jets season has spiraled away from them in between.
“Yeah, it’s a lot of what-ifs that we talk about,” Hall told The Post after practice Friday. “But at the end of the day, you gotta snap back to reality and live in the present. The present is we gotta find a way to win.”
The Jets’ talented group of playmakers in Wilson, Hall, Omar Cooper Jr., Adonai Mitchell, Kenyon Sadiq and Mason Taylor — with a competent quarterback in Geno Smith and strong offensive line to utilize them — was a big reason there was genuine optimism before the year. The group had the potential to create a dynamic offense after years of ineptitude. On paper, plenty of teams would sign up for that kind of offensive firepower.
But that group was quickly disrupted and hasn’t had a chance to show its full strength. Sunday could be the first time since the season opener that the full complement of offensive weapons is available.
And really, since the first drive of the opener, as Cooper suffered from a sprained ankle on the seventh offensive play of the season.
Cooper missed Weeks 2-5 with the injury. Mitchell missed Weeks 3-6 with a finger injury. Hall was out for Weeks 4-8 with a quad injury. And once Hall returned last week in the loss to the Chiefs, Wilson was out with the concussion he sustained the week prior in a loss to the Raiders.
It’s likely they will now all finally get their chance. Cooper (ankle) and Mitchell (knee) are both listed as questionable for Sunday, though they were full participants in Friday’s practice and Glenn indicated they will play.
If there is something left for Jets fans to watch this season, it’s how this group looks together.
“It’s good to see all those men getting a chance to be on the field,” Glenn said. “But I will continue to say this: There’s only one ball, and I wish there were more than that because those guys are extremely talented and they have the capabilities of making not just big plays, but able to sustain drives for us by the way they operate. Again, I look forward to having all those guys out there. I know they look forward to it, and I know Geno does too.”
It’s likely too late for the Jets to save this season and play any meaningful football the rest of the way. But it’s an opportunity for this offense to establish itself ahead of next year — Wilson, Hall, Mitchell, Cooper, Sadiq and Taylor are all under contract for next year. If the Jets fire Glenn and are in a head coach search next offseason, it could be something that entices potential candidates.
“It’s a great opportunity,” Hall said. “I think we have some very winnable games. We’ve lost five one-score games, so I think teams know we’re good and capable of it. It’s all about finishing.”
Finishing in the red zone has been the main struggle holding the Jets offense back so far this year. They’ve moved the ball well in their own half before falling apart when it matters most.
A full-strength unit could help in that area.
“I feel like we can be one of the top-tier offenses in the league,” Hall said, “for sure.”
It’s time to prove it.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: nypost.com
