Jets Place McCown On IR, Sign RB Judd To 53 Man Roster

The New York Jets have placed quarterback Josh McCown on the injured reserve list, ending his 2017 NFL season. McCown finishes the year with 2926 passing yards, good for 21st on the Jets all time single season passing list, 18 touchdowns, tied for 17th on the list, and a passer rating of 94.5, tied for 4th on the list.

Replacing McCown on the Jets 53 man roster is running back Akeem Judd, promoted from the Jets practice squad. Akeem Judd is a 24 year old, 5’ 10”, 225 pound power back out of the University of Mississippi. He originally signed as an undrafted free agent in 2017 with the Tennessee Titans. Judd was cut by the Titans and later signed to the Jets practice squad in October 2017. Judd’s promotion probably signals running back Elijah McGuire’s ankle injury from last Sunday’s game is serious enough to cast doubt on his availability for next Sunday’s game against the New Orleans Saints.

In other Jets roster moves offensive lineman Geoff Gray, a member of the Jets practice squad the entire 2017 season, was signed by the Cleveland Browns to their active roster. The promotion of Judd to the Jets active roster and Gray to the Browns active roster left two openings on the Jets practice squad. One of those openings was filled when the Jets signed returner/running back Jahad Thomas to the practice squad. This is the third go around for Thomas with the Jets in 2017. The Jets signed Thomas August 23, 2017 after he was released by the Dallas Cowboys, then cut him on September 2, 2017. The Jets re-signed Thomas to their practice squad on October 10, then released him again on October 18. Jahad Thomas is a 22 year old 5’ 10”, 190 pound scatback/returner out of Temple University. With the addition of Thomas the Jets now have three players primarily suited for return duties: JoJo Natson on the active roster, and Thomas and Lucky Whitehead on the practice squad.

The other new addition to the Jets practice squad is quarterback Joel Stave. Joel Stave is a 25 year old, 6’ 5”, 236 pound quarterback out of the University of Wisconsin. Stave was originally signed in 2016 as an undrafted free agent by the Minnesota Vikings. Stave has spent time in the NFL with the Vikings and the Washington Redskins practice squads. There was some talk in 2016 that the New England Patriots had interest in him in the 2016 draft. One rumor reported on Pats Pulpit was that the Patriots seriously considered drafting Stave in the third round of the 2016 NFL draft before they ultimately selected Jacoby Brissett. Stave has some prototypical NFL quarterback traits, with a 6’ 5”, 236 pound frame, a strong arm, and experience running a pro style offense. However, as NFL.com put it:

For all the physical boxes he checks off, issues with accuracy and decision-­making have been too present in his game and fans at Wisconsin let him know about it. Stave throws as pretty a pass as any quarterback in this draft, but very few quarterbacks have been able to overcome his weaknesses and become reliable NFL quarterbacks.

Yep, sounds like a Jets quarterback. Stave should fit right in.