NY Jets: Marcus Maye expected to play despite multiple injuries

NY Jets’ safety Marcus Maye is expected to play on Sunday despite multiple injuries.

The NY Jets have been hit hard with injuries thus far and the regular season hasn’t even begun yet. But despite overwhelmingly bad news coming out of Friday’s injury report, the update regarding safety Marcus Maye was promising.

Maye was one of the Jets’ brightest stars of training camp as the fourth-year safety stepped right into the massive hole that was left by the departed Jamal Adams. And to his credit, he performed better than anyone could have expected.

Thriving in the do-it-all role that Adams once filled, Maye was able to show off a side of him that had not been seen before in his NFL career.

No longer was he simply confined to the role of a typical center-field free safety. Now, he was being used as a blitzer, lining up opposite tight ends in man coverage, and even roaming the middle of the field as a linebacker from time to time.

He was being asked to be an expanded version of himself. And he could not have impressed more.

Marcus Maye’s injuries threatened to delay his 2020 debut with the NY Jets.

Unfortunately, Maye suffered a calf injury in the final week of training camp and was held out for the remainder of the summer. The hope was that he would be ready for Week 1 despite his injury.

But then Maye was held out of Thursday’s practice for what was called an ankle injury. All of a sudden, Maye was now dealing with multiple injuries that threatened to keep him sidelined for the team’s season opener.

That said, Friday’s injury update from head coach Adam Gase provided a sense of optimism, at least regarding Maye.

The 27-year-old was a limited participant in Friday’s practice, but at least he did return to the field. The Jets have officially labeled Maye as “questionable” for Sunday’s game, but it seems as though he’s on track to play.

Manish Mehta of the NY Daily News even went as far as to say that “Maye is expected to play” against the Bills while others simply stated that he was “trending towards playing.”

Either way, it seems likely at this point that Maye will be on the field come Sunday barring another setback. That’s good news for a Jets team already nursing injuries to the likes of Denzel Mims, Avery Williamson, and La’Mical Perine who have all been declared “out.”

Maye could be on track for a monster season in 2020 if he can stay healthy. Thankfully, all signs point to him playing in the Jets’ season opener.