D’Angelo Ponds' return to Jets practice comes as a double-edged sword

The New York Jets are a couple of days away from their Week 1 opener against the Tennessee Titans and got some good news in the process. The Athletic's Zack Rosenblatt reported that rookie cornerback D'Angelo Ponds was working with corners in positional drills on Tuesday.

After missing all of training camp with a calf strain, Ponds is finally back on the field, which is in line with head coach Aaron Glenn stating that he would be ready for Week 1.

Finally seeing Ponds on the field for the first time in weeks is massive, but at the same time, he missed a bunch of valuable reps during camp, so there's no telling how ready he'll be if he takes the field.

D’Angelo Ponds is back at New York Jets practice, but there's a catch

When New York took Ponds with the 50th overall pick in April's draft, there was an expectation that he would be a Day 1 starter at either outside or nickel cornerback. He wasn't going to be handed anything and would have to earn it.

Considering how shaky the cornerback room is, Ponds would have had a real shot to do so, but being absent from practice for a while now, would you feel comfortable throwing a rookie out there for meaningful snaps without having much time to learn and ramp up?

That's a risky bet for sure, yet at the same time, there's no hiding that Ponds is one of the most talented cornerbacks on the roster. He was a three-year starter in college, including two starting years with Indiana.

And while he was there, Ponds was a high-impact player. His speed and instincts in coverage are things that pop immediately. Despite being undersized, the Jets believe in his physicality. That hasn't wavered yet; at the end of the day, reps are reps.

Those are invaluable, and no matter what Ponds shows on the field this week, he's behind the eight ball in terms of playing time. It's also important that Ponds will play inside a bit, but that's a new position, so there will be a learning curve there.

It's hard to be fully confident that Ponds could make an immediate impact in Week 1. Even if he suits up, the Jets will put him on a pitch count. There's no way he'll be asked to play the bulk of the defensive snaps.

That would be malpractice by Glenn and his coaching staff if they did so. That wouldn't put Ponds in the best situation to succeed, and New York understands that. On a larger scale, it's great to have Ponds back on the field, but regarding the short term, New York has to be cautious with whatever plan they have for the rookie.

Ponds is going to be a long-term option for this defense, but expectations for the start of the year need to be tempered.

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