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Sam Darnold returned to practice Wednesday on a limited basis for the first time in more than three weeks, but the Jets weren’t ready to make any statements about his status for Sunday’s game against the Dolphins.
“We go in there thinking that he will be able to do a lot [in practice]Head coach Adam Gase said ahead of the team’s practice at Florham Park. “With Sam, we take it from day to day, we’ll see how (Wednesday) goes.
“Hopefully things are going well and he’s feeling good. Things are going in the right direction, but we’ll take this one day at a time and see how this week goes.
Gase added that the coaching staff will “eliminate any type of unnecessary throwing” in Darnold’s practice, limiting his participation in individual and team drills.
The third-year quarterback missed the last two games with an AC joint sprain in his shoulder, with veteran Joe Flacco starting with losses to the Patriots and Chargers around a week 10 goodbye .
The Jets (0-10) appear to be heading towards the No.1 pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, giving them a chance to select Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence.
Darnold maintained he wanted to play again this season, regardless of the team’s record. He said Monday his shoulder feels better throwing, but the Jets weren’t sure how she would react to strikes in game situations, which is hard to simulate in practice.
“I’m not worried about structural damage or anything like that is how good it’s going to be?” Gase said. “Will he be able to recover if he’s hit?” If he is pushed to the ground, the pain will be so there that he will not be able to go.
“It’s the last thing we want to happen in the first set of the game. If this happens, we now have a problem. We have to keep talking about it, see how he feels. We will continue to talk about this.
When asked if Darnold will need to change his playstyle to protect his shoulder, Gase added that he and offensive coordinator Dowell Loggains can “help” him by calling plays designed to protect his shoulder.
“We can avoid some of those types of things, but at the same time, we have to let him play like he used to play,” Gase said. “His biggest thing to protect himself is when he finds himself in those positions outside the pocket, it can be a throwaway, instead of trying to do something crazy and expand the game to the point to endanger him.
“I think there are some things he can do to protect himself, but at the same time, that doesn’t take away from the way he plays.”
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