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The New York Jets are reportedly hopeful that second-year running back Breece Hall — who was beginning to look the part of a bell-cow running back before going down with an injury during his rookie season — will be ready for Week 1 of the 2023 season.
According to Jets general manager Joe Douglas, the team thinks there is a “possibility” that Hall, who looks like an Offensive Rookie of the Year candidate before tearing his ACL in October, is ready for the start of the 2023 season.
“Look, I think we’re all hopeful that that could be a possibility. There’s still a lot of meat on the bone in terms of his return-to-play protocols and his rehab. He’s in a great place right now. I would say he’s ahead of schedule from where he’s supposed to be and he’s hitting unbelievable top-end speeds already on our GPS and his rehab,” Douglas recently told the media.
Douglas stressed that the team would not be rushing Hall back to the field as they know what kind of player he can be when fully healthy.
“So I know he’s going to be chomping at the bit to get on the field early. So we’re gonna have to do a good job of protecting him against himself a little bit because he’s so motivated, so hungry, and attacking rehab the way he is. So we’re gonna see. We have very detailed checkpoints for Breece to hit in his rehab and we’re gonna follow that to a ‘T’ because I think we all saw last year the weapon that he can be with the ball in his hands.”
Hall is expected to be a key piece on an offense that now features four-time NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers as its quarterback. In addition to Hall, the Jets offense also boasts weapons such as Offensive Rookie of the Year Garrett Wilson and newly signed wide receivers Allen Lazard, Mecole Hardman, and Randall Cobb.
The addition of Rodgers is expected to turn the Jets, who haven’t qualified for the postseason since 2010, into a playoff team as their current betting odds to win the Super Bowl trail only the Chiefs, Eagles, 49ers, Bill, Bengals, and Cowboys.