Transcript of head coach Rex Ryan's news conference following Friday's midday practice at the Atlantic Health Jets Training Center:
Nobody officially out for the game. Mike DeVito doubtful. Did not practice. Doubtful. He's doubtful. All right, the guys that are questionable. There's three of them that are questionable. Joe McKnight with the elbow, he was limited today in practice. Brandon Moore did not practice with the hip; questionable. Marcus Dixon with a hip also is questionable.
Everybody else is probable: Vladimir Ducasse, knee, Shonn Greene, rib, David Harris, ankle, Jeremy Kerley, knee, Ellis Lankster, low back, Nick Mangold, ankle, Calvin Pace, groin, Tanner Purdum, low back, Matt Slauson, knee, Eric Smith, knee, LaDainian Tomlinson, knee, and Mo Wilkerson, shoulder. Only Eric Smith was limited today in practice, but everybody else was full in that probable group. That's basically it.
Joe McKnight with his, he's questionable. His elbow, his right arm, this is probably going to be a gametime decision. His right arm is still like twice the size of his left arm [joking]. No, it's not. It's actually going down, though. I think it started that way, but the swelling is coming out of it, so we'll see how he is. I'm still confident that Brandon will go, but again, we're actually going to get him to the stadium early, put him through a couple of deals and make sure he's fine, but I think he is.
On how optimistic he is about DeVito's chances of playing on Sunday…
I'm doubtful. I'm going to use that word because that's where we have him on there. We're not going to put him at out, but guys, there's a 75% chance that he won't play. Isn't that what doubtful is? See, it's not 100%. You guys figure it out.
On DeVito dressing for practice…
I know. He comes out to practice every day, so you don't want to just rule him out, but then he says, "Please give me another day. Please give me another day." OK. Doubtful. I don't see it, but the guy, he is working his tail off to get back out there.
On how difficult it would be for Moore to play Sunday without practicing…
Well, I mean it's not what you prefer, obviously, but with Brandon, he's played 117 games in a row, I believe was the stat. I think he's OK. It's not like you're going to fool him or anything. He gets all of the mental reps. He's doing all of the preparation things like he always does, so I'm confident he'll be just fine.
On what he would like to see from Moore on Sunday morning before the game…
Well, I just want to make sure that he feels like he cannot just protect himself, but he can function at a high level, like he always does. If there's any hesitation there then we'll just active Big A [Austin Howard] and we'll put [Caleb] Schlauderaff as our starter.
On if Moore may miss practice time for the rest of the season…
Yeah, absolutely. And sometimes we've done that before with LT [LaDainian Tomlinson] and different guys. He's played a lot of snaps. Anything to get our guys ready to go at their highest level on Sunday, that's what you target. Clearly, practices, you prefer practice for timing, for communication, for everything, but there's time when it's probably better to not even practice a guy, so it's a balancing act that you've got to weigh.
On if he thinks the fans understand where they are as a team…
I think that. I think our fans definitely understand where we are. We're fighting for our playoff lives, so they understand that. Have we made it easy to be a Jets fan all these weeks? Probably not like we've wanted to, but again, the one thing they know from our team is you're going to get everything we have. Is it going to be good enough? We think it is. Sometimes, it's not, but we're going to lay it out there for us and for them. I think that our fans appreciate that. The fact that we're going to have a double-take on introducing the offense, I want everybody to know that Mark Sanchez is a pretty good quarterback. I think it'll be good. I think it'll be a shot in the arm when he comes out to a bunch of applause, because I think that's what will happen.
On what is dangerous about Kansas City's offense…
One of the best running games in the league. I don't know specifically what they're ranked, probably sixth or seventh I think in rushing. They have three capable backs. I think that's where you start. We have to do a great job in the run because that's what is going to put them in uncomfortable situations, third-and-long and stuff like that. That will play to our advantage. That's what we're shooting to do. We have to do a great job of stopping the run.
In the back end, obviously, you can't fall asleep. It's not like this team is going to run it 60 times and throw it eight times or whatever Denver did that one game. That's not what we're getting. This team is capable of throwing the football. They have big time wideouts on the outside. We have to be dialed in. They'll run Wildcat. They'll run bootlegs. This kid [Tyler Palko] is pretty decent on the move. They present some problems. They have a 6'7" tight end. They are certainly a challenge out there.
On if he likes what Shonn Greene has done lately coming off his three-TD game…
Yes, that was impressive. We'll sign up for that each week. Three touchdowns? That would be great. He's tough and this time of year, everybody is beat up. I don't know if Kansas City is because they only had three guys on the injury report, but maybe they're a lot healthier than we are. I think this time of year, you're beat up and the tough guys, they hang in there and they keep going. When you look at our backfield, everybody is hurt. [Bilal] Powell is going to get an opportunity this week. We'll see how he does.
On if he likes how patient Greene has stayed despite the team's early season struggles to run the ball…
That's the thing. We knew as a football team that we can run the football team, we had to run the football better. I think we're doing that. We've been challenged. Washington has a good front. Kansas City, obviously, is a good front. It's definitely going to be a challenge, but we know we just have to keep hanging in there. That's why sometimes to me, rushing attempts are more important than rushing average. You have to be persistent, just keep running the football. Eventually good things will happen.
