NY Jets news: Mekhi Becton illness, Xavier Gipson praise, Jets safeties

Mekhi Becton misses practice
Xavier Gipson earns serious praise
Jets have four starting safeties?

Justin Fried

NY Jets, Mekhi Becton / Al Pereira/GettyImages

The NY Jets were without one of their starting offensive line for Friday's practice as right tackle Mekhi Becton was absent due to an illness. Becton was added to the injury report, and his status for Week 1 is uncertain.

The hope and expectation is that Becton will be good to go in time for the team's season opener against the Buffalo Bills on Monday Night Football, but Jets head coach Robert Saleh did not provide any additional details at this time.

Becton was a limited participant in Thursday's practice as he continues to work his way back from a knee injury. The former first-round pick is hoping to play his first regular-season home NFL game in front of fans this Monday.

Left tackle Duane Brown (shoulder) and running back Breece Hall (knee) were both limited again on Friday, but both players are expected to play. We should find out more about Becton's status when Saleh speaks to reporters later today.

Other NY Jets news

Garrett Wilson praises Xavier Gipson

Undrafted rookie wide receiver Xavier Gipson clearly has a lot of fans in the Jets' building. Aaron Rodgers and many of the Jets' coaches have gone out of their way to praise Gipson this offseason, and you can now add Garrett Wilson to the growing list.

Wilson spoke glowingly of his teammate when talking to reporters on Friday, insisting that Gipson has the potential to be one of the best receivers in football. He also praised Gipson's heart and mindset.

"Let me just say this: Zay is a special person. He has a huge heart. That's the main thing I noticed about him when he got here ... He's got a special ability. I tell him, if you can do that every day, you're going to be one of the top dudes in this league for a while. He's got all the ability in the world. He's got a great head on his shoulders and I'm excited to see what he does with it."
Garrett Wilson

It's easy to see why Gipson was able to carve out a roster spot. He's a special-teams standout who has quickly endeared himself to seemingly everyone in the Jets' organization.

The Jets are very excited about his future.

Do the Jets have four starting-caliber safeties?

Jets defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich spoke to reporters following Friday's practice, and he heaved some significant praise toward the team's safety room. Ulbrich isn't just high on the Jets' starters — he believes the team's backups have starting ability as well.

Ulbrich told reporters that he believes the Jets have four starting-caliber safeties on their roster. That includes projected starters Jordan Whitehead and Tony Adams, as well as backups Adrian Amos and Ashtyn Davis.

Whitehead and Amos have plenty of starting experience, and Adams put together one of the most impressive summers of any player on the Jets' roster. As for Davis, he doesn't exactly have as impressive of a pedigree.

Nonetheless, this certainly suggests that the Jets plan to use more three-safety looks on defense this year. Don't be surprised if Whitehead, Adams, and Amos receive significant playing time.

Justin Fried

Justin Fried is an editor for FanSided who has over seven years of experience covering the NFL and various other sports. A diehard Jets fan since birth, Justin has served as the editor for The Jet Press since 2019, interviewing athletes such as Sauce Gardner, Curtis Martin, LaDainian Tomlinson, Joe Klecko, and many others. Justin has also worked closely with brands like Red Bull to help highlight the niche sectors of the sporting world. His four-part series on the sport of breaking remains one of his proudest pieces of work. In his spare time, Justin is an avid pro wrestling fan who is fortunate enough to have traveled to nearly 30 different countries.