The Jets are headed for a kicker call they can’t keep kicking down the road.
Jason Sanders is set to handle the job in Week 3 against the Detroit Lions, according to the New York Post’s Brian Costello, but that appearance will be his third and final elevation from the practice squad. After that, New York has to choose: sign Sanders to the active roster or move on and keep Blake Grupe.
That decision has been building for weeks. The Jets went through a messy summer at kicker, cycling through options before settling into a competition between Cade York and Sanders. Grupe, who was claimed off waivers from the Indianapolis Colts, made the 53-man roster, while Sanders stayed on the practice squad and kept getting the call on a week-to-week basis.
It has not been a smooth ride, but Sanders has done enough to keep himself in the conversation. His opener against the Tennessee Titans included a brutal miss from 50-plus yards, yet he has steadied since then and earned the staff’s trust. Through two games, he has hit 4 of 5 field-goal tries and all four of his extra points.
Grupe’s case is much harder to read. He owns an 81.9% career field-goal percentage, but his preseason with Indianapolis was rough, with just 2 of 4 kicks made. That included misses from 50-plus and from inside 40.
Under NFL rules, teams can elevate practice squad players without counting them against the 53-man roster, but non-quarterbacks only get three such elevations in a season before they must be signed to the active roster or released. Sanders is at that limit now, which puts the Jets in a corner after the Lions game.
And unless New York wants to carry two kickers, the choice feels pretty clear. If Sanders delivers again in Week 3, the Jets will likely keep the hotter leg and move on from Grupe.
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Jets WR Crisis Could Force An Unexpected Choice Vs Lions
The Jets are heading into their game against the Lions with their receiver room stretched thin, and Aaron Glenn said the team plans to elevate a wideout from the practice squad to help patch things together. With multiple injuries leaving the position group short on healthy bodies, the move feels less like a luxury and more like a necessity as New York tries to get through another week.
Sterling Shepard and Tyler Johnson were recently added to the practice squad, giving the Jets a pair of veteran options to consider before kickoff. Glenn did not say which one would get the call, so the decision now hangs over a depth chart already under pressure and adds one more bit of intrigue to a matchup the Jets would rather approach with more stability on offense. [Read more 🡒]
Jets Pass Rush Has A Real Chance To Rattle Detroit
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Bailey figures to see one of two familiar-looking tests on the edge, either Blake Miller coming back from injury or Larry Borom after a rough recent outing, while Kingsley Enagbare and Will McDonald should also be in the mix. For a Jets defense looking to make an impact early, this is the kind of matchup where one strong stretch from the front can tilt the whole game plan. [Read more 🡒]
Jets Have One Obvious Week 3 Answer They Need To Embrace
Garrett Wilson has already shown through the first two weeks why he has to stay central to the Jets plan, but his role has not been consistent from one game to the next. After looking like the kind of receiver who can tilt a game in Week 1, he was less involved in Week 2, and that uneven usage stands out even more with Detroit coming to town. The Lions have not been stout on defense, and their secondary has been hit hard by injuries, which gives the Jets a clear opening if they want to keep the offense moving.
For New York, the cleanest path in Week 3 is to lean into the matchup and keep putting the ball in Wilsons hands early and often. Detroits defensive issues should make him a focal point of the game plan, especially with the Lions vulnerable on the back end. The Jets do not need to get fancy here, and the evidence so far points in one direction: get Wilson involved, and make the Lions prove they can slow him down. [Read more 🡒]