The Jets got the news they were dreading on Monday when an MRI exam confirmed that Darrelle Revis has a torn ACL and is likely lost for the season.
Coach Rex Ryan confirmed the news during his Monday press conference, a day after the Jets beat the Dolphins 23-20 in Miami. Saying he just heard about the severity of injury “five minutes ago,” Ryan would not rule out Revis for the year yet. But it is extremely unlikely the team’s best player would return this season and could soon be put on injured reserve to free up a roster spot. Ryan said he wanted to talk to Revis before making the decision, though.
“I look at it this way, this is a team game and as a team we have to step it up,” Ryan said. “Our guys will respond. We certainly have to accept the challenge and we are going to come out and compete, we may have to do it a little differently, but we are going to give it our best shot.
“Is it a major blow when you lose a player like Darrelle Revis? Of course, absolutely. But this is a football team and I think we showed that yesterday, too. There were plenty of times to get down in that game, but we kept fighting and stayed together. And that’s why we found a way to win. It’s going to take everything we have, pulling together like we are, keep competing and we’ll see what happens at the end of the day.”
On Sunday, Revis’ leg buckled as he tried to avoid an oncoming block while chasing a short pass from Dolphins quarterback Ryan Tannehill to running back Daniel Thomas with 3:54 left in the third.
Revis — who missed last week’s loss at Pittsburgh after suffering the first concussion of his football career in Week 1 — was able to get to the sidelines, but he had to be taken to the locker room on a golf cart and was not with his teammates after the game.
“Everyone has to step up, and that’s it. . . . We just have to pick it up, and maybe we play some opponents differently,” Ryan said. “There’s different ways to skin a cat. You can’t just take away their receiver with one guy, but we’ll find a way.”
Kyle Wilson, a first-round pick in 2010, will move up and start alongside Antonio Cromartie.
“We drafted him to be a No. 2 corner and that’s what he’s going to be,” Ryan said of Wilson. “And I am confident in Kyle and then we have two young tough players in Isaiah Trufant and Ellis Lankster that are going to have to step it up.
The victory in Miami did improve the Jets to 2-1 and move them to first place in the AFC East, but they will be tested with a difficult schedule ahead that they must now face without Revis.
“That’s the horrible thing that came out of the game,” Ryan said of Revis’ injury. “Obviously the good thing is that we found a way to win.”
Ryan said seven players on the Jets have returned from torn ACLs and resumed successful NFL careers.
“It’s certainly a big disappointment. I know the way Darrelle is, this is a guy that is competitive as it gets. I don’t think there’s any doubt he’s going to come back strong from it,” Ryan said.