Eric Decker Injury: Updates on Jets Star's Hamstring and Return

Updates from Thursday, Oct. 16 

Eric Decker's status for Thursday's game against the Patriots has been confirmed by New England's Twitter account:

Updates from Sunday, Oct. 12

The Jets announced Eric Decker will play in Week 6:

Updates from Friday, Oct. 10

ESPN's Jane McManus has the latest on Decker's status:

Updates from Thursday, Oct. 9

Seth Walder of the New York Daily News has an update on Decker's status:

Kimberly Martin of Newsday adds more from head coach Rex Ryan: 

Updates from Wednesday, Oct. 8

Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News provides an update on Eric Decker's injury:

Updates from Monday, Oct. 6

Anthony McCarron of the New York Daily News provides a statement from Jets head coach Rex Ryan discussing Eric Decker's injury status:

"

Decker warmed up before the game, but could not go. He has dealt with the injury since training camp and it’s limited him during the regular season; he even had to be pulled from practice on Thursday.

'The trainers said he can’t go,' Rex Ryan said. 'The fact that he made the trip I think is a positive thing. He wasn’t ready.'

It’s only the second game that Decker has missed due to injury in his career.

"

Updates from Sunday, Oct. 5

Rich Cimini of ESPN confirmed that Eric Decker will miss Week 5:

Updates from Friday, Oct. 3

Dennis Waszak Jr. of the Associated Press has the latest on Decker's status:

Jane McManus of ESPN has an update on Decker's status after Friday's practice: 

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The Jets injury issues at wide receiver continued on Friday. Eric Decker, who missed Thursday after his hamstring injury worsened, did not appear to practice on Friday, and at one point, left the field and didn’t return for the portion of practice open to the media.

"

Dennis Waszak Jr. of the Associated Press adds more from the wideout on his status:

Updates from Thursday, Oct. 2

Dennis Waszak of the Associated Press has bad news regarding Eric Decker's balky hamstring:

Kimberly A. Martin adds more from coach Rex Ryan on Decker's status:

Seth Walder of the New York Daily News reported on Decker's status at Jets practice:

Updates from Sunday, Sept. 28

The Jets confirmed that Eric Decker is active for Sunday's game vs. Detroit:

Updates from Friday, Sept. 26

Dennis Waszak Jr. of the Associated Press reported on Eric Decker's status from the Jets' injury report:

Earlier, ESPN's Jane McManus had an update on Decker:

Updates from Thursday, Sept. 25

ESPN's Rich Cimini has an update on Decker's status:

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Eric Decker, he of the cranky hamstring, participated in positional drills Thursday during the 30-minute period open to the media -- an indication he could take part in team drills on a limited basis. That's an encouraging sign, considering Decker wasn't able to finish Monday night's game.

"

Coach Rex Ryan talked about if he regretted playing Decker on Monday against the Jets via Mike Florio of Profootballtalk:

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On Thursday, Ryan told reporters he has no regrets about playing Decker.

“No, because again, especially when you get a veteran player, guy [who] knows his body and things,” Ryan said.  “We weren’t planning on playing him that many snaps.  How much it’s going to hold him back, we’ll see.  We’ll see if it holds him back at all for this game.  I’m not sure. . . .

“It’s easier to look back now and, ‘Oh, he tweaked his hamstring again.’  Let’s see how it affects him moving forward.  If he was out for five weeks then absolutely you’d regret it, but I don’t think that’s going to be the case.”

"

Updates from Wednesday, Sept. 24

Rich Cimini of ESPN has an update on Decker:

However, Kimberly A. Martin of Newsday has good news regarding his status for Sunday:

Updates from Tuesday, Sept. 23

Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News provides an update from head coach Rex Ryan, who spoke about Eric Decker's hamstring injury and status:

Decker talked about his injury on Tuesday, according to Brian Lewis of the New York Post:

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“[I ran] a few plays and decided it was best to step aside and pull myself out. I gradually tightened up,’’ Decker said. “It was to the point where it wasn’t loosening up, and instead of doing something stupid and really hurting something down the road I decided to pull myself and give myself a chance.’’

[...]

“I’m just going to take it day by day. I really think with the progress I made last week and even [Monday] — I don’t call [Monday] a setback. If I keep progressing I feel like I’ll be good to go by the weekend,’’ said Decker, who added this injury isn’t as severe as the one he suffered in the loss to the Packers.

“In Green Bay it was a different feeling than it is now. [Monday] it was just a tight feeling that wouldn’t loosen up, and if I pushed through it, it could create something worse. Understanding my body, I knew that was the best thing to allow myself to be more productive throughout the year instead of do something stupid and be out a month.’’

"

Updates from Monday, Sept. 22

Eric Decker collected one catch for 19 yards in the first half against the Bears, but he would not play in the second half due to his hamstring injury according to Kristian Dyer of the Metro New York:

Bob Glauber of Newsday had earlier reported on his status for the second half:

The New York Jets previously had confirmed that Decker is active for Monday's game:

Earlier Adam Schefter of ESPN reported on Decker's status for Monday night's game:

Rich Cimini of ESPN also reported on Decker before the Jets' game vs. Chicago:

Updates from Saturday, Sept. 20

Brian Costello of the New York Post provides an update on Eric Decker's injury:

Updates from Friday, Sept. 19

Kimberly A. Martin of Newsday had more on Decker after practice:

Kimberly A. Martin of Newsday has an update on Decker:

Updates from Thursday, Sept. 18

Eric Decker's status for Sunday remains up in the air according to Darryl Slater of NJ.com:

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Ryan indicated that he could play Decker in the game even if he does not practice at all this week. But ideally, Ryan would like to see Decker get some practice work in.

“He’s a veteran player, but obviously, you’d like to have him test it a little bit,” Ryan said. “I’m not going to just say he has to be out on Saturday (participating in practice), but that’s what you’d like, to see him do some things. Really, for his own mentality, his own mindset, that: Yeah, I can do this, and I feel fine.”

"

Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News reported on Decker's participation in practice:

Earlier, Slater reported on Decker's potential availability for Week 3 following yesterday's practice:

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Though Jets wide receiver Eric Decker did not practice Wednesday, because he tweaked his hamstring in Sunday’s loss at Green Bay, he said it was “a good sign” that he was able to do some jogging in the rehab area of the practice field, under the supervision of trainers.

[...]

For Decker, the next couple of days will be important, as he determines if he is healthy enough to play Monday.

"

Slater continued with a statement from Decker discussing his injury status and recovery:

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... on Wednesdays, 'you’re still sore from the game, regardless of injury or not,' he said. So it was hard for him to gauge, during his jogging exercises Wednesday, what pain stemmed from his hamstring tweak, and what was just normal postgame aches.

“That’s why every day from here on out is going to really be a telling sign for me,' Decker said, adding that his hamstring 'feels better than (Tuesday).'

[...]

'My mentality is to take it one day at a time. I would love to play (Monday), so (I) am just making sure that we take the right steps. Don’t do too much, but do enough to feel it out and make a decision once that day rolls around

I just have to do a better job of listening to my body. With hamstrings, (I) have to make sure my gluts are good, my quads are good, everything around the hamstring muscle is good to go. That’s on me as far as listening to my body and doing the correct things.'

"

Dom Cosentino of NJ.com had more on Decker from practice:

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Wide receiver Eric Decker, who's nursing a hamstring injury, was at practice with his helmet, which is a change from Wednesday. But Decker wore sneakers instead of cleats and was not in shoulder pads, making it unlikely he would practice at all. After the team finished stretching, Decker joined the trainers in the rehab area to do agility exercises.

 

"

Updates from Wednesday, Sept. 17

Kimberley A. Martin of Newsday had an update on Decker's status:

Eric Decker's status for Wednesday's practice has been confirmed by Darryl Slater of NJ.com:

Updates from Monday, Sept. 15

Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News reports on Eric Decker's status for Week 3:

Mehta later passed along comments from Rex Ryan on his status:

Original Text

Eric Decker may have hauled in an early touchdown catch against the Green Bay Packers Sunday, but he and the New York Jets received some unfortunate news. 

Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News filled fans in on the details:

Decker’s health will be important going forward for the Jets, who have little depth at the position. In addition, the quarterback situation is still somewhat questionable. Geno Smith is yet to establish himself as a top-notch quarterback in the NFL, which means having a veteran like Decker on the field would at least give him a go-to option.    

Remember, Decker was a dominant player last year with the Denver Broncos when he tallied 1,288 receiving yards and 11 touchdown catches. Of course, having Peyton Manning throwing you the ball as a wide receiver helps boost those statistics.

Tom Lynn/Associated Press

If Decker is out for an extended time, it could mean trouble for the Jets receiving corps. Jeremy Kerley will need to step up, and the team will likely rely even more on running backs Chris Johnson and Chris Ivory.