Jets Country

Robert Saleh Explains Why Jets Signed New Punter; What's Up With Braden Mann?

New York signed a veteran punter on Wednesday after bringing in four for a workout to start Week 2.

Max Goodman

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After Braden Mann's subpar performance in the Jets' season-opening loss on Sunday, New York brought four punters in for a workout. 

Then, they signed one of them—ex-Chargers punter Ty Long—to their practice squad.

Turns out that decision to audition new faces and bring in a veteran was a result of more than just Mann's struggles between the lines against the Ravens in Week 1.

Head coach Robert Saleh revealed to reporters on Wednesday that Mann is managing a back injury. 

"During the game he was getting some back stiffness, he was dealing with some back stuff during the game," Saleh said. "Obviously it's documented with some of the performance. We'll see, he'll punt on Friday. We just brought in the punter for backup purposes."

Long brings three years of experience with him to Florham Park. The Alabama-Birmingham product spent the last three seasons with the Chargers, punting 151 times (averaging 46.5 yards with a long of 69 yards). He even did a little bit of kicking in his first pro season, drilling seven of nine field goal attempts and all nine extra points back in 2019.

Mann, a sixth-round pick from general manager Joe Douglas' first draft class in 2020, has played in 27 games. He missed seven games last year—kicker Matt Ammendola and veteran Thomas Morestead filled in while Mann was out. 

Across those 27 appearances, Mann is averaging 44.4 yards per punt. He shanked a punt for just 20 yards on Sunday against Baltimore, contributing directly to the Ravens pulling away in a blowout. 

It seems like Mann is still likely to suit up on Sunday, depending on how he feels when he gets back to practicing in a few days. Either way, it doesn't hurt to have another player available as insurance—whether it's due to an injury or as competition with the starter's downward spiral of production. 

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Max Goodman
MAX GOODMAN

Max Goodman covers the New York Jets for Sports Illustrated and FanNation. He also covers the New York Yankees, publisher  of Sports Illustrated and FanNation's Yankees site, Inside The Pinstripes. Before starting out with SI, Goodman attended Northwestern University and the Medill School of Journalism. He earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Broadcast Journalism and Master’s Degree in Sports Media, graduating in 2019. While at school, Goodman gathered valuable experience as an anchor and reporter on NNN SportsNight and played on the club baseball team. Goodman previously interned at MLB.com as an associate reporter covering the Miami Marlins. He also interned with ESPN, working as an associate reporter on Mike Greenberg's Get Up. Goodman is from New York City. He grew up in Hell's Kitchen. Follow Goodman on Twitter @MaxTGoodman and connect with him via email by reaching out at maxgoodmansports@gmail.com.

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