Jets reportedly to work out former Cowboys kicker Dan Bailey
Dan Bailey, one of the NFL's best kickers, was cut by the Cowboys, a surprise move that has opened the door for teams like the Jets to work him out. Credit: AP/Michael Ainsworth
It’s on to Detroit for Sam Darnold and the Jets.
The team didn’t make any waiver claims Sunday or sign any recently released free agents. But they reportedly will work out kicker Dan Bailey Monday.
Bailey was waived by the Cowboys Saturday in a surprise move. He’s the second-most accurate field-goal kicker in NBA history (88.2) percent. Jason Myers’ hold on the Jets’ kicking job might be tenuous.
For now, though, the Jets’ 53-man roster is set. They return to practice Monday and will begin preparing for their season-opener against the Lions on Sept. 10.
“We will be ready,” coach Todd Bowles said. “You’re never ready until you play. We have to go out and play. I’m not one to sit up here and talk and say ‘Rah, Rah, Rah.’ We go out and play and we prove our worth. There’s no sense in talking about it.”
It was somewhat surprising that Jets didn’t try to add some depth on the offensive line or at outside linebacker. They’re thin at both spots.
The Jets are still in the market for an edge rusher, and reportedly met with former Charger outside linebacker Jeremiah Attaochu, who the 49ers cut Saturday. But barring a move before next Monday’s game at Detroit, the Jets will start the season with Josh Martin, Jordan Jenkins and Brandon Copeland as their outside linebackers.
The offensive line is also considered a weak link. But if left tackle Kelvin Beachum, center Spencer Long and right guard Brian Winters can stay healthy, it could be better than expected. The Jets need it to be in order to keep Darnold healthy.
All signs point to Darnold being the starter, but Bowles hasn’t made that announcement yet. It could come at some point this week, or not.
Gamesmanship and not wanting to give away any competitive advantages to the Lions could be the reason Bowles hasn’t named Darnold over 39-year-old Josh McCown, who started last year and threw for a career-high 18 touchdowns and rushed for five scores in 13 games.
Over the last two-plus weeks of practice, Darnold has worked almost exclusively with the first-team offense and he started the second and third preseason games. McCown started the preseason finale, but that was with the second- and third-team offense.
Darnold said he would be comfortable if he was the Jets’ Week 1 starter, and he looks forward to growing as a player.
“I learned a lot in a short amount of time,” the third overall pick said. “Just excited to see where I can go from here in terms of my knowledge of the game and also just getting better fundamentally.
“Being able to just learn the offense, how much I’ve been able to grasp and being able to spit it out in the huddle, I thought I did a really good job and I improved a lot since the first game."
After trimming the roster to the league-maximum 53 Saturday, the Jets started to put together their 10-man practice team Sunday.
There were some expected names — linebackers Frankie Luvu and Anthony Wint and defensive backs Brandon Bryant and Jeremy Clark. They were all cut Saturday. There also were some intriguing names, including Darnold’s former USC teammate, wide receiver Deontay Burnett and former Broncos running back De'Angelo Henderson.
Also interesting, but not surprising was that Bill Belichick and the rival Patriots claimed former Jets receiver Chad Hansen off of waivers. The Jets cut the 2017 fourth-round pick Saturday.
Hansen showed some flashes as a rookie and was impressive in the spring. But he only caught two passes in the preseason for eight yards. Hanson may get a chance to flourish with the Patriots, who will be without Julian Edelman for the first four games because of a suspension.
The Jets kept six receivers — Robby Anderson, Quincy Enunwa, Jermaine Kearse, Terrell Pryor, Andre Roberts and Charone Peake — and have another on the suspended list (ArDarius Stewart). Roberts and Peake have more value on special teams.
Reportedly, the Jets will work out another receiver Monday, former Ravens first-round pick Breshad Perriman. He caught just 10 passes for 77 yards last season.
Al Iannazzone covers the Jets for Newsday after spending nearly two decades on the NBA beat with Knicks and Nets.
