News & Info/Headlines

Wayne Chrebet (sprained knee) missed practice for a second straight day Thursday, but the consensus among observers says the veteran wideout is still likely to play. No. 2 halfback LaMont Jordan (sprained ankle), returned to practice after sitting out Wednesday's session.

And according to New York Daily News sports writer Rich Cimini, Jordan said yesterday he's ready for an expanded role in the offense. However, he stopped short of demanding the ball.

First of all, Jordan doesn't want to rock the boat. Secondly, he doesn't believe Curtis Martin is the cause of the team's inability to establish the run.

"The most frustrating thing for me is to pick up the paper and listen to people talk negatively of Curt, like it's his fault," Jordan said. "It ain't that man's fault. In order for a running game to be successful, you need somewhere to run and you have to actually run the ball.

"When people criticize him, that really touches me personally," he continued. "It's something I really don't appreciate. If you don't know what you're talking about, the best thing is to keep your mouth shut."

In the pregame warmups last Sunday, Jordan and Martin were standing side-by-side when a Jets fan screamed, "Break your leg, Curtis!" An enraged Jordan turned and glared at the fan.

Statistically, Martin is off to the second-worst start of his career (80 yards on 25 carries). The worst was last season (11yards after two games), but that was injury-related. He could barely walk after spraining an ankle in the second quarter of the season opener.

As Cimini noted, Jordan is torn. He has an enormous amount of respect for Martin, but he'd like more carries.

"I think I'm ready, but what I think doesn't really matter," said Jordan, a second-round pick in 2001 out of Maryland. "It all comes down to the coaches. In this business, in certain situations, you have to remain silent and wait for your opportunity."

The Jets coaches are torn, too. As much as they would like to get Jordan's fresh and powerful legs into a game, they have to defer to Martin because of his track record -- eight straight 1,000-yard seasons. In Foxboro, where the Jets play Sunday against the Patriots, Martin has had five straight 100-yard games. "The best way we play is when we're balanced, when Curtis is running the ball, because he's a weapon," head coach Herman Edwards said.

Jordan will remain in his role as the short-yardage back. From all indications, he will spell Martin in the base offense, which rarely happened last season.

"I'm the goal-line back, so I know when those situations come up, I'll be in the game, but I'd definitely like to see the ball more during the course of the game," Jordan said. "It's hard to get a backup running back in there and put a Hall of Famer on the bench when you're only getting 15 to 18 plays in a half.

"I'd like to get the ball more, but I truly understand the situation. I'm not one of those guys who's going to bitch and bicker about getting the football."

In an article published Monday, Pro Football Weekly suggested the team might use more formations featuring both Martin and Jordan in the near future -- especially if fullback Jerald Sowell cannot make a significant impact as a pass catcher.

The Jets obviously miss Richie Anderson, who left via free agency, and Sowell hasn’t made his mark in the offense thus far. The key concern for the Jets is how good a blocker Jordan will be for Martin and whether they want to expose Martin to blocking duties when Jordan gets the ball.

Also of interest. ...

Chad Pennington hopes to have the seven surgical pins in his fractured left hand/wrist removed by the end of next week. Pennington said his recovery is on schedule.

Best-case scenario: a Nov. 2 return against the Giants. He revealed that only one bone was fractured, not four, as initially reported. That hasn't affected the prognosis. An X-ray taken Wednesday showed the fracture and the four dislocated bones are healing properly.