The Jets got the news they expected Monday — pass rusher Jermaine Johnson tore his right Achilles tendon in Sunday’s win over the Titans and is expected to miss the remainder of the season.
Johnson announced the MRI results on X on Monday.
He suffered the injury in the third quarter of Sunday’s 24-17 Jets win in Tennessee.
Johnson was chasing Titans quarterback Will Levis when he collapsed to the ground.
“It’s official,” Johnson said in a video. “MRI just came back positive. Well, negative information but positive results. I did tear my Achilles. But we good, man, we in great spirits. We gonna get back right, it’s just another opportunity to brag about what I came from.”
The 25-year-old defensive end was a key piece of the Jets defense and this will be a major loss for the team.
Haason Reddick, who has been holding out for a new contract, gained some leverage over the team.
Jets coach Robert Saleh would not say this injury increases the urgency to get Reddick into the building.
The Jets have Will McDonald and Micheal Clemons as their lead edge rushers.
“I’ll say it again. We got the guys that we have in our room, guys that we love,” Saleh said. “The guys that we’ve been working with and those are the guys we are going to continue to work with until everyone figures it out.”
Saleh said he is hopeful that injured players C.J. Mosley (toe), D.J. Reed (knee) and Michael Carter II (ankle) will all be able to play on Thursday against the Patriots.
Reed missed Sunday’s game after he “wasn’t feeling it” following a pregame evaluation.
Mosley left the game in the first half.
Carter, who has been dealing with an ankle injury since training camp, missed a stretch of the game.
The Jets did not practice on Monday but issued a projected injury report that said Mosley would not have practiced.
The Jets had a better day defensively against the Titans than they did against the 49ers in Week 1.
The Jets allowed 130 yards rushing, but 38 of those came on scrambles by Levis.
“All things considered, I thought the run defense was much improved,” Saleh said. “Obviously, the first couple drives took us a second to get our feet into it, but I think they had about 24, 25 carries for about 90 yards on designed run plays. I know the quarterback scrambled for 40, so it looks a little, it looked like they had 130 yards, but it was really more like 90 if you take out those QB scrambles, but overall, I thought it was much improved in the run game, especially with that scheme that we’re playing against. It’s a well-designed scheme and a scheme that’s hurt us in the past.”
The 49ers rushed for 180 yards on 38 carries in Week 1.