NY Jets: Denzel Mims battled bad case of food poisoning this spring

The NY Jets haven't seen the best of Denzel Mims this offseason. In fact, they haven't really seen much of him in any capacity.

The second-year wide receiver missed almost all of OTAs and minicamp with a non-COVID illness and when he returned this summer, he found himself buried on the depth chart.

Mims has worked almost exclusively with the second and third-team offense in training camp and many have speculated as to why the Jets have seemingly soured on him.

However, his lack of reps might have more to do with his illness than anything else. Mims spoke about his spring absence on Wednesday and detailed that the illness was much more severe than most assumed.

NY Jets WR Denzel Mims has struggled this summer partially due to his spring illness

Mims revealed to reporters that he lost roughly 20 pounds as a result of the food poisoning that was apparently caused by "bad salmon." Needless to say, he hasn't had salmon since.

The former Baylor star showed up to OTAs weighing around 217 pounds, but dropped down to under 200 at a point. He told reporters that he's back up to 208 right now as he continues to work himself into shape.

Mims' struggles this summer have been well documented with rumors that he could either be traded or even outright released flaring up this past weekend. Evidently, those rumors might have been a little premature.

Head coach Robert Saleh said that Mims' roster spot was 'absolutely not' in jeopardy when asked by a reporter. Perhaps this is just coach speak, but it seems highly unlikely that the Jets move on from Mims after just one season.

The 23-year-old has slowly been receiving more reps in recent days and, while he's still working with the second/third-team offenses, the Jets are easing him back into the wide receiver rotation.

Is there any truth to the Mims rumors? Perhaps. Mims isn't an ideal fit for the Jets new offensive scheme and he was already working behind Keelan Cole before his illness.

But the "roster bubble" talks are overblown. Denzel Mims isn't going anywhere, and his "struggles" seem to be more related to his food poisoning than anything else.