JET NOTES
For the second consecutive day, Jets punt and kick returner Chad Morton did not practice full, leaving him only with today’s session to prepare for Sunday’s opener.
Morton, who turned up yesterday on the injury report as “probable” for the Colts game with a stomach virus, did take a handful of punts at the very start of practice and then was told by team trainers to go inside and stay out of the sun.
Herman Edwards said after practice that he was “comfortable” with what he saw of Morton, a critical ingredient to the Jets’ special teams success.
Though the Jets fully expect Morton to field punts and kicks Sunday, Laveranues Coles, Aaron Glenn and Wayne Chrebet fielded punts in team prac- tice drills yesterday.
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Though he was upgraded from “doubtful” to “questionable” on the injury report yesterday, Tom Tupa still has not punted full-go and is highly unlikely to punt Sunday. That means Tommy Parks will make his NFL debut.
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The Jets remain interested in former Bengals DT Tom Barndt, though several other teams are interested as well, including the Chiefs, Broncos and Packers, according to his agent, Ron Del Duca.
Barndt was in Kansas City yesterday, though no deal was struck as of last night. The Jets, meanwhile, sound as if they might want to sign Barndt next week if he’s still available.
“Yeah, we’re interested in the guy; he can help us,” Edwards said. “We have to do some things to get him in here. We have to let somebody go. We’ll go through this game and decide.”
Barndt passed a physical with the Jets the other day (he missed time last year with a torn pectoral muscle).
Del Duca said he spoke with Jets GM Terry Bradway yesterday and was asked to “stay in touch,” adding that he’s already “talked parameters” with the Jets regarding a contract.
Meanwhile, Edwards, asked if Russell Maryland is in or out of the picture, said, “I talked to Russell last Sunday, he was going to call me back and he didn’t call yet. So I don’t know if it’s money or what, but he knows the phone number and I know his agent.”
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Jets practice squad QB, rookie Tory Woodbury, is making quite an impression as a scout team receiver, making spectacular catches in seemingly every practice. Yesterday, Woodbury made an acrobatic one-handed cherry-pick catch of a Chad Pennington throw from high in the air over the middle of the field.