Marcelino McCrary-Ball Injury Tracker: Latest Updates on Jets' Special Teams Ace After Early Week 2 Exit

It was an eventful start to the Jets' Week 2 clash with the Packers, to say the least. While both sides struggled to put up points early because of less-than-ideal weather conditions, multiple New York and Green Bay players were carted off the field with injuries, with one name being Jets special teams ace Marcelino McCrary-Ball.

McCrary-Ball was carted off the field during the second quarter, with the Jets later clarifying that the 27-year-old linebacker is dealing with an ankle injury. The former Indiana Hoosier's 20 special-teams snaps in Week 1 were second only to Malachi Moore (21), illustrating just how much a potential absence would be felt if McCrary-Ball is forced to miss extended time.

Fellow LB Kiko Mauigoa, who played all 18 of his snaps on special teams last week, was also deemed questionable to come back with a quad injury.

Marcelino McCrary-Ball (ankle) and Kiko Mauigoa (quad) are questionable to return
— New York Jets (@nyjets) September 20, 2026

As with any significant injury, Jets fans will learn more about McCrary-Ball's condition after Sunday's game, as well as in the coming days (assuming he undergoes MRIs). In the meantime, here's everything we know about the developing situation.

Analyzing Marcelino McCrary-Ball's injury

Although McCrary-Ball hasn't been ruled out at the time of writing, the fact that he was carted off the field isn't a good sign. That typically happens with more severe injuries, signaling that a player can't get off the field on their own.

Since he's already been diagnosed with an ankle injury, it sounds like McCrary-Ball could be dealing with some sort of ankle sprain. If that's the case, the severity of the situation will impact the recovery time. According to Harvard Health Publishing, Grade 1 sprains carry a recovery time of up to three weeks, Grade 2 situations last from three to six weeks, while Grade 3 sprains can take "up to several months."

Of course, I'm not a doctor, and that's speculation. It could be a less severe issue, or something in the opposite direction.

Previous injury history

McCrary-Ball doesn't have a history of ankle injuries; however, Jets fans will remember how a hamstring injury landed him on injured reserve in 2025, limiting him to just five appearances. He also had an ACL injury while with Indiana in 2020.

Hopefully, this is the last of lower-body injuries to plague him.

Jets' plan without McCrary-Ball

As mentioned earlier, McCrary-Ball tends to eat up a good chunk of snaps on the Jets' special teams. The Roswell, GA native averaged 19.1 special teams snaps per game in the first three seasons of his career, and the fact that he exceeded that number last week—while playing to a solid grade of 77.8 on Pro Football Focus—underscores his importance to ST coordinator Chris Banjo's unit.

Depending on how much time McCrary-Ball misses, the Jets could give some of his snaps to guys who played single-digit special teams snaps in Week 1, such as Arian Smith (6), Darrell Jackson Jr. (3), or Dane Belton (9). They could also look to promote someone from the practice squad, like a Mory Bamba, Troy Reeder or Samuel Womack III.

Hopefully, McCrary-Ball is back sooner rather than later. At the same time, it's nice to know that the Jets have options if he's sidelined for the foreseeable future.

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