Order was restored on the practice field yesterday. Chad Pennington was again taking snaps with the Jets’ first-team offense.
Eric Mangini, as usual, played coy about his definitive plans at quarterback, but if you’re a fantasy football participant, take this advice for your roster this week: Don’t start Kellen Clemens.
Because, barring an unforeseen Pennington setback with his sprained right ankle, the Jets won’t be starting Clemens, who’ll have to wait to build on his terrific fourth-quarter performance from last Sunday. Pennington will face Miami this Sunday.
Even Dolphins head coach Cam Cameron said he expects Pennington to play.
“We’ll be prepared for both, but I would be surprised if Chad didn’t play,” Cameron said yesterday.
“Knowing the kind of competitor [Pennington] is and [the Jets] playing at home all factor in. We would think he is going to play. I’ve always been impressed with Kellen and was as he was coming out of college. I worked him out and thought highly of him. I thought his performance against Baltimore was rough but he hung in there and gave the Jets an opportunity to win the game late.”
The 0-2 Jets need more than “rough” at quarterback – particularly with Dolphins game-wrecker Jason Taylor lining up over D’Brickashaw Ferguson, who was a bit rickety against the NFL’s Defensive Player of the Year last season.
When Pennington was asked point blank yesterday if he expects to start, he toed the company line and steered away from saying anything definitive.
“My goal is to be available,” Pennington said. “I’m going to prepare just like I always prepare and work just as hard as I always have worked. Nothing has changed for me as far as my mindset and my focus and what I’m trying to do. That’s my job as a player and my goal. I’ll leave the decision up to Coach.”
After a hellish week of rehabbing, Pennington pronounced himself as “ready to go” for the Ravens game and was privately miffed when Mangini opted for Clemens.
By everyone’s admission, though, Pennington’s progress has been significant and it appears it would take a major unexpected setback to keep him out Sunday.
“I’ve made a lot of progress,” Pennington said, crediting the Jets’ medical and training staff. “People inside and outside of the organization are really working hard, focusing on getting better, rehabbing and working extremely hard around the clock. I’m making progress and I feel really good about the situation.”
Asked how close he was to playing last Sunday, Pennington said, “I worked and prepared extremely hard on an injury that normally takes some time [from which to recover]. My goal was to be available on Sunday and I was available. I left it up to Coach to make that decision [on who started].
“That’s why he’s the head coach. He makes those decisions. Once he did, I turned my focus to helping Kellen as much as I could on the sideline and giving him my knowledge of what I was seeing during the game.”
Asked how badly he wanted to Play in the 20-13 loss, Pennington said, “Every game, I want to be there. I’ve experienced being on the sideline before with injuries and that’s a horrible feeling because you can’t help your teammates physically or mentally on the field – and that’s where it counts the most.”
And where he will be on Sunday.