Jets’ Devin Smith says he’s not rusty as he nears return vs. Eagles

This might be the week that Devin Smith makes his long-awaited debut for the New York Jets as all signs point towards the wide receiver being back,ready and good to go.

The team’s second round pick, Smith practiced in full again on Thursday and perhaps not a moment too soon. The offense is without wide receiver Chris Owusu, who had his knee scoped this weekand will be out three weeks. In addition, wide receiver Eric Decker suffered a knee injury on Monday night in a win at the Indianapolis Colts, casting doubt on his availability for Week 3.

Smith suffered a ribs injury in training camp and didn’t play in preseason or in the first two games of the regular season. He returned to the field last week and there was some thought he might play against the Colts but he was inactive.

He told Metro on Thursday that he feels ready but he won’t actually know how his progress has come until he steps on the field in a situation where he’ll be hit and tackled.

“I don’t know if I can tell you, just because[there’s no]tackling and everything. as of right now, this week, I’m feel pretty good,” Smith said.

“With the offense,I’mfeeling pretty comfortable. For me, I feel like I haven’t missed a beat. Just all about getting used to the whole process of hearing the play, going out there and executing, running the routes, those type of things. The more I did more and more, the more I’m feeling comfortable.”

Smith certainly brings a unique element to the team with very good speed and arguably the best feet of any wide receiver on the roster. His return adds a big-play element and he can help stretch the field.

But since he’s missed seven weeks of practice and has yet to play a game for the Jets, Smith might not yet be ready to show his full potential at this point.

“I don’t think I have any rust because for the most part, I feel really good. I was out there practicing this whole week,” Smith said.”I feel like the speed is still there, running routes really well.”