Tomlinson feeling fresh
LaDainian Tomlinson is feeling pretty refreshed right about now.
"Yes, I do," the running back said this afternoon. "That was pretty much the gameplan for the year, to keep me fresh and down the stretch possibly increase my workload. I am fresh and feeling good, so the coaches have that option, if they want to use me more."
Rex Ryan likes what he's seing from the Future Hall of Famer.
"When I saw him yesterday in practice, I was like, 'Wow,' " Ryan said. "I mean, he looked as fresh as he can be. That could be interesting getting a fresh L.T. for the last part of the season. That would be great for us."
Now that Tomlinson has returned to practice this week for the first time since suffering a MCL sprain in the Jets' Nov. 13 loss to the Patriots, they'll get the option of expanding Tomlinson's role a bit if they so choose when the Jets take on the Redskins at FedEx Field.
Tomlinson, who's run 46 times for 167 yards and a TD and also has 25 catches for 312 yards and a score, practiced for a second straight day today and didn't report any setbacks.
"It felt good running around and cutting," he said. "I really pushed myself to see where I really was and I was happy with the way I responded. It wasn’t too sore, it didn’t swell up at all. So that let me know that I’m ready to go."
Tomlinson was listed as questionable for Sunday's win over the Bills, though Rex Ryan had said Tomlinson was likely closer to doubtful. Still, he said he nearly suited up.
"I was pretty close, I really was," he said. "But at the end of the day, they were smart with me and waited for this week."
And as ecstatic he is that he'll be playing this week, Tomlinson is more pumped up about the playoff push the Jets are currently immersed in.
"I’m more excited at where we are, saying we’re challenged," he said. "We have to win games now. We have to pretty much go undefeated or 4-1, but we want to be undefeated this last stretch. That’s why I’m excited because we play our best football when our backs are against the wall."
