Ryan Fitzpatrick was having a little fun updating — or not updating — the media on the state of his left thumb and when exactly he might be getting the torn ligament in it surgically repaired.
But one thing came out loud and clear as Fitz bantered with reporters: He wants to keep playing without a hitch if at all possible.
"Yeah, we're kind of weighing different options right now," the QB said a day after helping to lead the Jets past the Jaguars, 28-23, and to a 5-3 record at the midway point of the season. "Obviously, I don't want to miss any time or any games, so the decision really is going to be based off that and just to make sure I don't miss any time."
The renewed interest in exactly what Fitzpatrick will be doing to make the thumb better began with him talking with CBS about getting a procedure done before the end of the season and then a CBS sideline reporter speculating Sunday that the best possible time for that would be this Friday, the day after Thursday night's Jets-Bills game, giving the thumb the longest chance of healing from any procedure.
"The information is, I need surgery at some point," Fitzpatrick said today. "I will not be having surgery before the game on Thursday. And that's about all I'll feed you for now."
But while he didn't break down and say when the surgery date might be, he did speculate that it's possible that whenever he gets it, the wrapping, bracing and gloving that he put his thumb and hand through to play against the Jaguars will enable him to keep playing.
"It depends on when I have it," he said of the recovery time, "but I think I would still be able to play with the brace if I did have it."
So then why not have the surgery Friday, he was asked. "Again, just weighing all the options,
Fitzpatrick said the padding affected him maybe twice during Sunday's game, once when he held onto the ball with both hands while trying to execute a play fake, which he said "isn't really good play action."
"But I was surprised at how little of an issue it was," he said. He added that "the pain's not too bad. It's not like I'm loopy on pain pills and shooting my thumb up. It's not that painful." He said he hadn't gotten any injections for it before the game.
So for now, it's full speed ahead toward the Bills for Fitzpatrick and the Jets. And as for any looming hospital stays, he said, "We'll see. You'll probably know something by Friday."
A Kick in the Pants
Head coach Todd Bowles went over his injury report, which is submitted on Monday for Thursday night participants. There are several problematic areas — safeties Calvin Pryor and Dion Bailey (ankle) didn't practice, nor did CB Antonio Cromartie (deep quad bruise).
But the craziest one of all was kicker Nick Folk's right quad. Bowles said he doesn't think Folk will be available for the Bills game, and might be out for up to four weeks.
So for the short term, the Jets need to sign a kicker. "We worked out a couple today," the coach said. "We're going to make a decision tonight."
And because of the other injuries and the potential roster problems they could present, Bowles said "it's possible" Folk may have to go on injured reserve. "We're going to discuss things tonight," he said.
