ARLINGTON, Texas — The Jets signed wide receiver Mecole Hardman to a one-year, $4 million contract this offseason and talked excitedly about what he could bring to their offense.
In Week 1, he played zero snaps on offense and one on special teams.
It was an odd thing to see Hardman barely get on the field.
The Jets said Hardman was a part of the plan going in against the Bills, but things changed once Aaron Rodgers was injured.
The team went to more running formations, with more tight ends and fewer receivers, and that left Hardman on the bench.
“You kind of know what was going on, man,” Hardman said. “When Aaron went down and everything transpired, I think everybody got out of whack and everything. I don’t blame them for it. I think it was just something that happened, and hopefully this week I can get some looks out there, some opportunities to make plays.”
Head coach Robert Saleh explained what happened.
“Obviously with Aaron, there was a certain plan that was in place, and so when Aaron went down, we shifted gears to a different style of football,” Saleh said. “A lot of the things that Aaron wanted to do was three receiver sets and once he was out of the game, we went to a different type of offense. We pivoted, especially at halftime. Credit to the offensive staff making the adjustments we needed to make to be able to start moving the ball and get points on the board. So, that wasn’t the plan.”
Hardman anticipates having a role this week against the Cowboys.
“I hope so. That’s the mindset,” Hardman said. “I’m just about the team winning. If we can win, I’m all for it.”
Cowboys RB Tony Pollard rushed for 70 yards and two touchdowns on 14 carries last week against the Giants.
With Ezekiel Elliott now in New England, Pollard is the man for the Cowboys.
Saleh said Dallas’ decision to move on from Elliott tells you what how good Pollard is.
“When teams make a decision to keep a guy over another, they’re speaking to the football world,” Saleh said. “I think inside the football world, I think anyone who’s ever played Dallas knows that Pollard’s extremely talented, and always has been by Dallas doing what they did this off season by making him the back and the only back. Just let the rest of the world know what football already knew.”
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