The New York Jets’ crowded backfield just got a little easier to sort out — for the wrong reasons. Running back Isaiah Davis will miss “a couple of weeks” with a knee injury, head coach Aaron Glenn told reporters Thursday at training camp, according to the Associated Press.
Glenn didn’t detail the exact nature of the injury, but he made clear it isn’t a long-term concern. “He had a minor knee [injury],” Glenn said, via NBC Sports. “He’ll be out maybe a couple of weeks, but he’ll be back. I’m confident that he’ll be just fine going into the regular season.”
That’s the key detail here. The Jets open the regular season Sept. 13 at Tennessee, and Glenn’s tone suggests this isn’t expected to threaten Davis’s Week 1 availability — just his practice reps for now.
What It Means for the Jets’ Backfield
Davis, 24, is entering his third NFL season after New York took him in the fifth round of the 2024 draft. He’s carved out a complementary role behind Breece Hall, and last season he set career highs with 236 rushing yards and 21 catches across 16 games before a concussion knocked him out of the regular-season finale, per CBS Sports.
Hall remains the unquestioned lead back. He turned in a career year in 2025, piling up 1,065 rushing yards and four touchdowns on 243 carries while averaging 4.4 yards per attempt, per ESPN’s stat log. That production earned him a three-year contract extension worth up to $45.75 million this offseason, according to Jordan Schultz of FOX Sports.
With Davis sidelined, the practice reps behind Hall shift toward Braelon Allen, the presumed No. 2 back entering camp. ESPN’s Rich Cimini, discussing the position battle on the “Jets Collective” podcast before Davis’s injury, noted that the coaching staff actually rates Davis highly — pushing back on the assumption that Allen had the backup job locked up. “The player that nobody talks about, who this coaching staff is very high on, is Isaiah Davis,” Cimini said, according to Heavy.com. “I think everyone is assuming that Braelon Allen is gonna win the No. 2 running back job… but that’s not exactly the case.”
Davis’s injury complicates that math. Missing camp reps while trying to hold off a healthy Allen is not the position Davis wanted to be in heading into the season.
Other Jets Injury News
Davis wasn’t the only name Glenn addressed Thursday. Cornerback Nahshon Wright is dealing with a hip strain, but Glenn doesn’t sound worried, saying Wright will be “just fine.” Rookie corner D’Angelo Ponds, the Jets’ No. 50 overall pick this year, has been out with a calf strain and is closing in on a return. “Ponds is getting close, he is moving around,” Glenn said, according to Heavy.com. “I don’t want to put a date on it just yet, but he will be ready in the next couple of weeks.”
Rookie tight end Kenyon Sadiq, recovering from hernia surgery, also got a positive update. Glenn indicated the team expects him back before Week 1 and downplayed any concern about a follow-up procedure.
| Player | Injury | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Isaiah Davis (RB) | Knee | Out ~2 weeks, expected ready Week 1 |
| Nahshon Wright (CB) | Hip strain | Considered minor |
| D’Angelo Ponds (CB) | Calf strain | Nearing return |
| Kenyon Sadiq (TE) | Hernia surgery | Out weeks, expected back for Week 1 |
None of these injuries, as described by Glenn, sound serious enough to threaten regular-season availability. But August is exactly the stretch where roster battles get decided, and every practice rep missed is a rep someone else picks up instead.
