Thursday's Injury Report Provides Jets' Defense With Mixed News (What It Means for Week 2)

Time is ticking down ahead of the New York Jets' home opener, which will see them host the winless Green Bay Packers at MetLife Stadium for Week 2 action on Sunday. Momentum is clearly on Gang Green's side heading into the weekend, but underestimating a hungry Packers squad—regardless of their season-opening implosion—could potentially be costly.

To beat Green Bay and send a message to the rest of the NFL, New York will need as many hands on deck to defend home turf this weekend. That's why Jets fans have been paying close attention to the team's injury situation throughout the week, because getting as many healthy, available bodies in the game and on the field Sunday will be key to improving to 2-0 in Year 2 of the Aaron Glenn era.

Fortunately, Thursday's injury report provided the Jets' faithful with the type of update they were hoping to hear so close to Sunday's showdown.

Jets get good and concerning news with Thursday's injury report

After Thursday's practice ended, the Jets revealed that veteran linebacker Jamien Sherwood and rookie cornerback D'Angelo Ponds were both full participants. That's significant after the duo was limited on Wednesday, leaving fans concerned about their potential availability for Week 2.

Of course, it wasn't all good news for New York's defensive unit. While Minkah Fitzpatrick and Joseph Ossai's absences were expected, stud EDGE Will McDonald IV was listed as limited with a new ankle injury, which isn't what fans want to see this close to Sunday.

D'Angelo Ponds and Jamien Sherwood were full participants in Thursday's practice after they were limited Wednesday pic.twitter.com/9KJtS6GMHz
— New York Jets (@nyjets) September 17, 2026

So, what do these updates mean as the Jets' Week 2 preparation continues?

Will McDonald IV

As mentioned before, McDonald's addition to the injury report was Thursday's biggest surprise. Whether it's a lingering injury from Week 1 or something new from practice, New York would prefer to face Green Bay with its star pass rusher being healthy as possible.

McDonald played a huge role in the Jets' season-opening win, benefiting from playing alongside David Bailey. The former first-rounder earned a team-high 80.8 PFF pass-rush grade after racking up five pressures (four hurries, one sack) across 25 defensive snaps. For reference, he had three five-pressure games in 2025, with the first not even happening until Week 10 against the Cleveland Browns.

No one wants to see McDonald's momentum derailed, so hopefully Friday's report sheds more positive light on his situation. If he can't go against the Packers, and with Ossai still sidelined, the Jets might have to rely on Bailey, Kingsley Enagbare, and David Onyemata to lead the edge rush into battle.

Jamien Sherwood

Sherwood has been hampered by a knee injury since last week's win over the Tennessee Titans, so it's good to see his participation increase as the week has progressed. The former 2021 fifth-rounder had a relatively quiet season debut, recording only two solo tackles despite playing 45 defensive snaps.

Even if it wasn't the most glamorous performance, Sherwood eats up a good chunk of snaps for the Jets, so having him on the field each week is a must. Besides, his Week 1 wasn't completely awful, as he showed improvements in coverage by limiting the opposition to seven yards on two targets, earning a 69.7 Pro Football Focus coverage grade.

Assuming that there aren't any setbacks, Jets fans can expect Sherwood's usual role and workload in Week 2.

D'Angelo Ponds

As exciting as it is to see Sherwood make progress, Jets fans are even more thrilled to learn that Ponds is one step closer to making his NFL debut. The 2026 Rose Bowl Defensive Player of the Game garnered buzz the moment New York drafted him 50th overall in April, but a calf injury sidelined him throughout training camp, the preseason, and Week 1.

Ponds could be in for a huge day if he's healthy enough to suit up for Gang Green's home opener. The Packers may have lost last week, but that didn't stop Jordan Love from throwing for 387 passing yards (two yards away from his career high) and a pair of touchdowns despite the Minnesota Vikings' nonstop blitzing. Considering how uninspiring Green Bay's run game is without Josh Jacobs, an early aerial attack could be in the cards.

Ponds will make mistakes like any rookie does early in his career, and that's okay as long as he learns from them. Sunday afternoon's matchup with the Packers would be a good first test to give the Jets a better idea of what the future could hold for the first-year cornerback.

If he can't go, though, expect to see plenty of Nahshon Wright, Brandon Stephens, and Jarvis Brownlee Jr. again.

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