Leonhard hurts knee on interception

Jim Leonhard's wife didn't want him returning punts this season as he came back from the broken right leg he suffered a year ago, so the Jets' safety knew he had an issue at home when coach Rex Ryan said he'd be handling punts Sunday against Kansas City.

Leonhard survived an immediate hit on the only punt he fielded against the Chiefs, but there's no safe haven from injuries on the football field.

Leonhard suffered what cornerback Darrelle Revis described as a "season-ending" knee injury while making a second-quarter interception in the Jets' 37-10 victory over Kansas City at MetLife Stadium. As Leonhard stepped in front of Tyler Palko's pass at the Chiefs' 38, wide receiver Steve Breaston tackled him by his right leg, pinning it to the turf as Leonhard twisted helplessly.

The 5-9 free safety had to be helped to a waiting cart, and he pounded the flatbed in frustration as he was driven off. The Jets said he was out for the game with a right knee injury and that an official diagnosis had to wait until Monday.

But Revis was talking about Leonhard in the past tense after the game, and he confirmed the worst fears of Jets fans when asked what he knew about his teammate's condition. "I heard the rumor that he's supposed to be out for the season," Revis said. "That's what I heard on the sideline. I don't know what happened or what the injury is. As we move forward, we'll hear about it and go from there."

In training camp this year, Revis said it almost felt as though last season ended when Leonhard was hurt in practice just before the New England game near the end of the season. The Jets lost three of their final four regular-season games but had enough cushion to earn a wild-card berth and eventually reach the AFC Championship Game.

No such cushion exists for these 8-5 Jets. "We know how big Jim is to our defense," Revis said. "It's a big loss for us, but you've just got to look at it as the same situation as last year. We had Eric Smith and Brodney Pool rotate back there, anyway. They are experienced."

SEE PHOTOSLong Island in the pros: NFL edition

Pool and Smith both were wary of commenting about Leonhard's status before an official diagnosis, but they performed capably against an inept Kansas City offense. "We've got a lot of depth, and we have guys who know what they're doing," Smith said. "When people go down, we can fill in."

Added Pool: "We've just got to regroup like last year. It's a group effort from the linebackers to the safeties to the corners; we all have to communicate. It's not one individual making all the calls."