Jets Place Cornerback Bless Austin on Injured Reserve

One day before taking on the Los Angeles Chargers, the Jets depleted secondary officially got thinner.

Cornerback Bless Austin was placed on the injured reserve with a neck injury, the team announced Saturday afternoon.

Austin, who has played in eight of the Jets' nine games thus far, missed practice after starting Week 11 with neck discomfort. After sitting out on Thursday, the 24-year-old was limited in practice on Friday and listed as questionable ahead of Sunday. Now, he'll be sidelined for at least the next three games.

READ: Jets' Final Injury Report For Week 11 vs. Chargers

Following the injury, Jets head coach Adam Gase was optimistic about Austin playing this week, revealing he had "a positive MRI result." He said before practice on Friday that if Austin's workout went well, he'd be good to go for Sunday in Los Angeles.

Evidently the injury was more serious and warranted a trip to the IR.

In eight games (seven starts) this season, the sixth-round pick out of Rutgers had 43 tackles, two tackles for loss, three pass defenses and one forced fumble.

As a result, New York will attempt to contain rookie quarterback Justin Herbert and the high-octane Chargers offense without Austin as well as recently released Pierre Desir and veteran Brian Poole (who is out for the rest of the season with a shoulder injury).

READ: How the Jets' Defense Plans to Hinder Justin Herbert on Sunday

At cornerback, that leaves rookies Bryce Hall, Lamar Jackson and Javelin Guidry along with Arthur Maulet and waiver pickup Corey Ballentine. 

Gase said earlier in the week that it'll be "all hands on deck" at corner as other defensive backs—like rookie safety Ashtyn Davis for instance—could be used at the position as well. 

In other news, the Jets activated linebacker Frankie Luvu from the IR and signed quarterback Mike White to the active roster. 

Follow Max Goodman on Twitter (@MaxTGoodman), on Facebook (also @MaxTGoodman), be sure to bookmark JetsCountry and check back daily for news, analysis and more.