While plenty has been made of Mekhi Becton and his lengthy injury history, there are plenty of durability concerns up and down the offensive tackle depth chart for Robert Saleh’s New York Jets. Becton of course, has missed all but a handful of snaps over the past two seasons but he’s not along in missing large chunks of time.
From all indications Becton is ready to roll for 2023, as he’s looking better now than he has at any point since becoming a Jet. But there are questions beyond Becton.
Starting left tackle Duane Brown missed five games before ending the year on injured reserve with a torn rotator cuff. Robert Saleh recently commented on Brown’s status as the team’s starting left tackle and said Brown will be a “hard out”, but given his age (38) and injury history, there will be lingering concerns.
Rookie tackle Max Mitchell outplayed his draft slot in 2022 when a rash of injuries rushed him in to action, but that was short lived as Mitchell himself would land on IR as a result of blood clots, missing eleven contests. Becton, Brown and Mitchell would end up missing a total of 33 games.
With the offseason now behind them, the Jets made some moves to add some depth at left tackle but most of those imports have had injury issues of their own. Rookie tackle Carter Warren out of Pitt missed nine games of his own while Billy Turner, formerly of the Packers and Broncos, missed nine weeks.
Yodny Cajuste is the least likely tackle to make the final roster and if he does, his list of red flags rivals that of Becton’s. Cajuste missed five games last season which for him, was a banner year. Since being drafted in 2019, Cajuste has missed two full seasons for multiple injuries while playing in a total of just 17 games.