NY Jets: Rookie RB La’Mical Perine carted off with injury in practice

NY Jets’ rookie running back La’Mical Perine was carted off with an injury in Sunday’s practice.

The NY Jets were bitten by the injury bug yet again in Sunday’s practice and by the look of things, this could be the most serious injury to date as rookie running back La’Mical Perine was carted off the field with an apparent leg injury.

Perine was hurt towards the end of practice after taking a screen pass from backup quarterback Mike White, who also left early with an injury. The rookie running back was tackled from behind by Frankie Luvu and fell awkwardly to the ground.

He was able to walk off under his own power, albeit with a significant limp. Shortly after, the team brought the cart out to the sideline to take Perine into the locker room.

Head coach Adam Gase told reporters after practice that Perine had suffered an ankle injury and that he would be undergoing an MRI to determine the severity of the injury. But of course, it doesn’t look good.

NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport did report later that the initial word is that the injury is “just a sprain,” but obviously the results of the test will reveal the full story.

The NY Jets suddenly have a lack of running back depth with La’Mical Perine out.

For the Jets, this is understandably a disappointing development given how well Perine had looked throughout the first couple of weeks of camp.

He was beginning to see some reps with the first-team offense and made the most of his opportunities during last Wednesday’s scrimmage busting out multiple long runs including a thrilling 79-yard touchdown run.

There was a chance that the fourth-round pick would be able to carve out a role in Gase’s offense in his rookie season, but those chances just got a lot slimmer.

If the injury is just a sprain, that’s certainly good news, but it does still mean he’ll likely miss regular-season action. Particularly if it’s a high-ankle sprain, Perine could miss significant time which would all but ruin any chance he has of contributing this season.

Or it could be a fracture and his season could be over just like that. We’ll have to wait for the results of the MRI to fully assess the situation, but it doesn’t appear good.

With Le’Veon Bell and Frank Gore as the only two healthy running backs on the roster (Josh Adams is injured and Kalen Ballage failed his physical), the Jets desperately need running back help.

Let’s just hope that Perine isn’t out for an extended period of time.