After suffering a concussion in Sunday’s blowout win over the Bills, Jets cornerback Darrelle Revis appears to be fine physically even though he may not be ready to play this Sunday in Pittsburgh.
Revis was cleared to resume physical activity on Wednesday, but was held back from practice or football drills. He was limited to just lifting and running and attended meetings with the rest of the secondary. He has not been cleared for contact.
There is an undercurrent of optimism that the team’s biggest star can play against the Steelers.
“He’s cleared to resume physical activity, but he’s out for practice today,” head coach Rex Ryan said. “Obviously as the week goes on he will progress further and do more things but obviously we will follow the NFL protocol and follow the trainers and doctors.”
In the first quarter of Sunday’s win, Revis had a leaping interception on an errant throw from Ryan Fitzpatrick, a play that proved to be one of the turning points as the Jets raced out to a 27-7 halftime lead.
Despite his ability to change games, Ryan won’t rush Revis onto the field in Pittsburgh if he isn’t ready to play.
“I’m not real sure [about Revis playing]. The NFL protocol [says] there’s stages you have to get to. He might be limited tomorrow for instance — might be contact,” Ryan said. “I don’t think he’ll have live contact even if he gets better until much later in the week.”
For Ryan, the health of his player in the near-term is important but he must also balance the need to have Revis available and healthy for the long, grueling NFL season that lies ahead.
“You have to take care of your player No. 1 and that’s the way it should be. Unless he’s ready to go, you don’t put him out there period,” Ryan said. “He’s in the meetings, he’s engaged and everything else. That was encouraging.”
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