Mekhi Becton plays good chunk of time in Jets' win over Panthers
Mekhi Becton of the Jets reacts during the fourth quarter of the game against the Panthers at Bank of America Stadium on Friday in Charlotte, N.C. Credit: Getty Images/Jared C. Tilton
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — There were plays in which Mekhi Becton looked pretty good on Saturday. There were plays in which he looked very bad. But as far as the Jets were concerned, the best thing he did in a 27-0 win over the Panthers was simply stay on the field as long as he did.
The former first-round pick, who is coming back from two ACL tears, played 27 offensive snaps and one special teams snap with the field goal unit. That’s almost four times as many as he played in the Hall of Fame Game last week, when his knee limited him to seven reps.
“It felt great,” Becton said. “I had a great time. Got to be out there a little bit longer for my guys.”
Even more promising, he probably could have kept going.
“He actually played a heck of a lot more than we were planning and he wanted to go more,” Robert Saleh said. “Really, really cool. I’m proud of him.”
Becton came into the game on the third series and played through the opening drive of the third quarter. He didn’t always seem comfortable and lacked the agility he showed as a rookie, but the Jets believe that will come.
“He took a really, really big step today,” Saleh said. “I really don’t care what the film looks like. We’ll watch it, we’ll correct it, all that stuff, but for him to build the confidence with the knee, that’s important, and it feels like he took that right step today.”
For Becton, though, this wasn’t a Neil Armstrong leap for mankind.
When asked if Saturday was that “big step” Saleh referenced, he said, “People will see it as that. But I don’t. Just another building block.”
Up next is to see how Becton feels in the coming days, how much he can practice this week and if he can increase his workload again next weekend. Perhaps a stint with the starting offensive line will be in his immediate future; he has spent most of this summer with the backups.
Becton said physically his knee was no different from what it was in Canton, even though he removed himself from that game early on.
“I just pushed through today,” he said. “I feel the same as I did after the game last week. It’s no different.”
It certainly seems as if it is to everyone else.
Tom Rock began covering sports for Newsday in 1996 and became its NFL columnist in 2022. He previously was Newsday's Giants beat writer beginning in 2008.
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