It has happened. The moment that every Jets fan has feared since the 2022 offseason began. Mekhi Becton has suffered a serious knee injury, according to Rich Cimini of ESPN. Becton went down at practice on Sunday, the morning after the Jets’ Green and White Scrimmage. Early reports suggested the team was optimistic regarding the injury, but the optimism didn’t last long. According to Pro Football Network’s Aaron Wilson, there is “chip sized fracture” in Becton’s previously injured knee. After being selected eleventh overall in the 2020 NFL Draft, Mekhi Becton has been the subject of endless scrutiny.
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The Backstory
Rookie Year
The earliest signs pointed to a big win for the GM Joe Doulas’ first ever draft choice, as Becton had excellent games as a rookie against some of the NFL’s best pass rushers. It didn’t take long for injury concerns to crop up back then, as Becton left only his third game with an injury. The following week against Denver, Becton was active but did not start, which was an unusual decision. The team inserted him into the game after their backup tackle was injured, which only aggravated Becton’s issue. As a result, he missed the following two games. Although he started the remainder of the games that season, nagging injuries plagued the rookie. Although he made every start, there were two games in which he played less than 60% of the snaps.
Year Two
The season was overall considered a success for Becton, and he played with more polish than many expected as a rookie. Although there were some questions about Becton’s ability to stay healthy, most analysts were bullish on his development as a second year player. The criticism began to appear in offseason activities and training camp, when it was reported that Becton came in notably out of shape and overweight. He was able to get into shape by the season opener, despite missing time in camp with a minor injury.
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Major injury struck for the first time a little more than halfway through the Jets 2021 season opener in Carolina. Becton was rolled up on by a teammate, and exited the game with what appeared to be a severe injury to his knee. The following reports were positive, suggesting that Becton would be able to return about halfway through the season. Although the Jets had fallen out of playoff contention by then, fans were eager to see Becton back. With eyes toward 2022, the hope was for Becton to get quality reps and continue developing.
The weeks came and went, and by the final game of the 2021 season there was still no clarity on his recovery. By then the questions about his body’s ability to hold up the NFL were prevalent, and warranted. It didn’t help that there were whispers that Becton had gained quite a bit of weight, and surpassed 400 lbs. Becton had become one of the largest storylines surrounding the Jets for the offseason
Year 3
The largest man was the largest question throughout the spring of 2022. He was most likely not going to keep his job as the starting left tackle, and many speculated that the Jets might draft a tackle high. Becton’s decision to forgo the optional OTA’s added fuel to the fire, leaving fans and media months to speculate what he might look like when he arrived. Would he be in shape? Would his knee be properly healed? Ultimately Becton arrived at mandatory minicamp overweight, but with a stable knee. After staying in New Jersey and training feverishly at the Jets facility, Becton was ready to go for training camp. He looked to be getting into the swing of practice, and optimism began to grow for the first time in almost a year. That is, until Sunday’s practice, when Becton exited early.
Unfortunately, the headline “Mekhi Becton Suffers Knee Injury” is relevant twice in less than 12 months. While the details are not fully clear at this point, I spoke with Kyle Trimble of Banged Up Bills to get an expert opinion. Trimble believes that while Becton may have a slight predisposition for knee injuries, the two injuries are unrelated. According to him, Becton’s rapid weight loss would likely have helped the stability of his knee structures as well. That means that while Becton’s injuries are unfortunate, they were in no way “preventable.” As a Doctor of Physical Therapy and injury spotter for ProFootballDoc, Trimble does a tremendous job covering sports injuries. It is important to note that any opinion is based on current information, and new details may emerge.
BREAKING: Mike Garafolo and Ian Rapoport say Becton’s injury is an avulsion fracture.
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Going Forward
The Jets hosted veteran tackle Duane Brown for a visit, and he was even on the field this Saturday as a guest. At the time, Brown would have been signed as tackle depth, but clearly things have changed. While no deal has been signed, it stands to reason that contract talks have heated up between Brown and the Jets. Brown has had a tremendous career, and despite his age, he would be a welcome addition to the team. Whether he would play right or left tackle is unclear, although Brown has played left tackle for his entire career. Backup tackle Chuma Edoga has stepped in on the right side, and has had a decent camp so far. Conor McDermott along with rookie Max Mitchell round out the primary depth.
What of Mekhi Becton? The injury all but guarantees that the Jets won’t pick up his fifth year option following the season. That will give him one final year under contract with the Jets in 2023, but it seems unlikely that they can enter that season counting on him to start. With both George Fant McDermott, and Edoga all in contract years, some moves will have to be made for the Jets at tackle in the coming months. Interestingly, Fant was Brown’s backup in Seattle before signing with the Jets. The best case scenario is that Fant repeats as a quality left tackle, and is extended. If the Jets sign Brown, and like what they see from Mitchell, the position is less dire. So that leaves Mekhi Becton, a knee injury, and quite a few “ifs.”