Jets rookie safety Jamal Adams rests with ankle injury
Jets rookie safety Jamal Adams speaks with the media after a day of training camp at the Atlantic Health Jets Training Center in Florham Park, New Jersey on Friday, Aug. 4, 2017. Credit: James Escher
FLORHAM PARK, N.J. — Jets rookie safety Jamal Adams sat out yesterday’s practice with a sprained ankle, and it’s unclear how long the first-round pick will be sidelined.
There’s a chance Adams will miss the annual Green and White scrimmage, which will be held at 7 Saturday night at MetLife Stadium. The No. 6 overall pick downplayed his injury, however, telling reporters, “It’s definitely not severe in my eyes.”
Matt Forte (hamstring) also did not practice for a second straight day and fellow running back Bilal Powell left practice after getting “the wind knocked out of him” during a team drill, according to coach Todd Bowles.
As of yesterday, Bowles didn’t know if any injured players would be held out of the intrasquad scrimmage. “I’m not trying to rush Matt or Jamal back,” Bowles said. “They get back when they get back, so I’ll see if anybody got nicked up today and see how bad they are tomorrow.”
He also said he’s not worried about Adams falling behind because of this setback. “It’s training camp. Guys get nicked up,” Bowles said. “It’s the first week. It’s going to happen. He’s going to get back when he gets back . . . He studies, so he’ll be fine.”
n Still back in action
Injuries helped paved the way for Devon Still’s comeback attempt. With defensive lineman Claude Pelon (knee) hurt and Brandin Bryant being waived/injured on Friday, the Jets signed Still, a former second-round pick of the Bengals who became an NFL fan favorite after his young daughter’s battle with cancer became public.
“All of my focus is on football right now,” said the 28-year-old, who put his playing career on hold after Leah Still was diagnosed with Stage 4 neuroblastoma at age 4 in 2014.
The Bengals cut Still in August 2014 but signed him to the practice squad to help pay for Leah’s cancer treatment.
“As a father, I had to dedicate my life to my daughter,” said Still, who was waived by the Bengals in September 2015 and later spent some time with Houston. “When you have kids, their dreams overtake your own dreams. I decided to put my dreams to play football on the back burner so my daughter could still be here, living. Now that she’s two years in remission, I’m putting my focus back to football.”
He has 43 tackles and a half-sack in four seasons.
Said Bowles: “Still has played in the league, he understands the system a little bit and we need someone that can come in and compete right away.”
Still said Leah, now 7, is at home in Houston attending cheerleading camp and unaware that her dad has a new job. “She’s going to be pretty excited,” he said.
The Jets also signed defensive lineman Jeremy Faulk and placed defensive back Corey White on injured reserve.
