Breece Hall shows off speed every time he touches ball
Jets' Breece Hall (20) warms-up during a joint NFL football practice with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Wednesday, Aug. 16, 2023, in Florham Park, N.J. Credit: AP/Seth Wenig
FLORHAM PARK, N.J. — Breece Hall had three touches in team competition and each time he showed the speed and burst that made him hard to stop last season.
Hall had two runs and caught one pass on a slant and took off for the end zone untouched.
“It was good to get him out there,” Robert Saleh said. “He still can run. That’s for damn sure.”
This was Hall’s first time in team drills since tearing his ACL last October. Hall was a leading candidate to win Offensive Rookie of the Year before getting hurt. Jets receiver Garrett Wilson ended up winning the award.
“You could tell he’s got some juice to him right now,” running backs coach Taylor Embree said. “I think for the whole room when you see someone work as hard as he did through an injury like that and the joy in his face when he got to go on the practice field it was awesome seeing that.”
The Jets will keep ramping up Hall’s workload in practice to get him ready for Week 1.
Becton moves over
Mekhi Becton played right tackle with Zach Wilson at quarterback during team competition for the first time this camp. Saleh said there is a chance Becton could play there in Saturday’s preseason game against Tampa Bay. If he can stay healthy, Becton could start at right tackle Week 1.
The offensive line has been the Jets’ biggest weakness and has come under fire for its struggles in two joint practices. Saleh isn’t surprised or overly concerned.
“I guess it’s a given. You know, New York: panic,” Saleh said. “I think individually we have a really good set of guys. All of them can play football. It’s just becoming a unit. I don’t think anyone in here is panicked.”
Wilson’s show again
Saleh said Saturday’s preseason game will look very similar to last week in Carolina. Aaron Rodgers won’t play. Wilson will start again and try to build on what Saleh believes has been a good camp for the young quarterback.
“His growth has been phenomenal and the confidence at which he’s just letting the ball rip,” Saleh said. “He’s playing without fear. He’s letting the bad plays go … He’s going to be in this league for a long time and he’s going to start for a long time. It’s really a credit to him in the way he’s attacked this.”
Al Iannazzone covers the Jets for Newsday after spending nearly two decades on the NBA beat with Knicks and Nets.
