New York Jets tackle Mekhi Becton has been injured…and he’s out for the entire season once again. There really can’t be any doubt that the 11th overall pick in the 2020 draft is a bust.
In the two years since Becton has been drafted, he has only played in 15 games. Yes, out of a possible 33 games from 2020-21, Becton has only played in 45% of them. And now he is out for another 17 games.
If he doesn’t come back at all next season, the New York Jets guard is set to miss a horrific 35 games out of 50 (70%). That’s terrible.
What’s even worse is that it seems Becton is the reason why these injuries keep reoccurring. His long-documented weight struggles with the Jets must have something to do with his constant muscles/lower body bone injuries and issues. You can’t weigh over 350 lbs. (with a lot of that not being muscle) and not expect to get injured when a fit, 250 lbs. linebacker comes rushing at you. Becton is destroying his own career before our very eyes with his uncontrollable weight.
Another concern is that Becton’s right knee has been injured again. Just like last season when Becton dislocated his knee against the Panthers in Week 1, the huge guard has been rolled over/run into/chop blocked by a defender (or however he hurt it, the details haven’t come out yet) on the same knee to fracture it in half. Now, instead of Becton missing 16/17 games, he’ll be missing all of them. I really can’t believe this situation has gotten worse for him.
But it has. And I would be really disappointed if I was a Jets fan.
1: For just supporting the Jets. 2: Because Mekhi Becton needed these past two seasons to improve his craft. The Jets left tackle gave up seven sacks in 2020 (5th most in the NFL that season among left tackles) and seven penalties (9th most in the NFL that season among left tackles) in a 2-14 disaster season.
Mekhi Becton needs practice and game reps to improve on these mistakes, yet the only thing he is improving on is lying down on a training bed. Staying sidelined for two whole years is the last thing a developing player needs.
With Becton now 23, his rookie deal only one year away from expiration, and two whole years of valuable experience and learning lost due to injury, the prospects of the tackle becoming one of the best in the NFL seems very slim right now. It is now up to the Jets to make a decision: do they keep Becton after his deal expires, or do they look to move on through the draft and free agency.
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