
--Reserve tight end A.J. Schable returned to practice on a full-contact basis four days after suffering what at first appeared to be a very serious injury in the preseason opener at Cleveland while covering a kickoff in the fourth quarter. Schable and the Browns' Cliff Louis had inadvertent helmet-to-helmet contact, and Schable immediately fell to the ground.
"When I was laying there on the field, that's the most scared I've ever been," Schable said. "Laying there for about a minute, I couldn't feel my left side. After the trainers came out, about 30 seconds later, I could start to get the feeling back. It's something I don't want to experience again."
Schable gave a thumbs-up signal with his left hand when he was being wheeled off on a stretcher, his neck immobilized.
"I could feel everything when I gave the thumbs-up," he said. "The next day, my neck was stiff and sore."
As for the play, Schable said, "It's just one of those things that happened on a kickoff, two big guys, running as fast as they can. Someone's going to take the brunt of it. He just caught me at the right angle."
Schable, who played against Washington, joked about speaking with his agent, Ronald Slavin, who obviously was concerned about his client.
Schable reported that Slavin said, "That's not how I want my guys to be on (ESPN) SportsCenter!"
--Receiver Laveranues Coles has been avoiding the media since his close friend, Chad Pennington, was released by the Jets after they acquired Brett Favre. But coach Eric Mangini insisted that he's not worried about Coles' psyche.
"Each situation takes different people different amounts of time to work through," Mangini said. "It's not a function of any sort of feeling towards Brett. ... (Coles) has been great in meetings and practices. There has been no real change with any of that stuff. He's a good, good guy."
Favre also tried to smooth things over, jokingly telling Coles, "I heard you're not talking to the media. I understand you don't want to say anything good about me. That's OK." Favre said the two players shared a laugh over that line and Coles assured Favre, "It's not that."
--Nobody usually refers to backup quarterback Brett Ratliff by his first name anyway, which is a good thing considering whom the Jets recently acquired.
"Everyone calls me Ratty," Ratliff said. "That's been my nickname for as long as I can remember."
His play certainly has been anything but ratty in the Jets' first two preseason games. He was 14-for-20 for 252 yards and two touchdowns, of 70 and 71 yards, in the Jets' 24-20 victory over Cleveland in the preseason opener, and followed that up by going 13-for-19 for 148 yards against Washington. He clearly is putting heat on Kellen Clemens for the No. 2 job.
Clemens went 5-for-12 for 63 yards against the Redskins, but was victimized by four dropped passes.
And as for the more famous Brett, Ratliff said, "I was a little nervous at first, but (Favre) is a great guy and he's easy to talk to. It's a great opportunity to be able to learn from him."
--The Jets waived rookie free-agent running back Rodney Kinlaw on Aug. 12 after they claimed fullback Justin Green off waivers from Baltimore. However, they then waived Green, who failed a physical, and re-signed Kinlaw two days later. However, Kinlaw still has a long way to go to match linebacker Jerry Mackey, who has been signed by the Jets five different times since last summer. Mackey was waived earlier this month.
--K Mike Nugent clanked a 23-yard field-goal attempt off the left upright on the final play to preserve Washington's victory. Coach Eric Mangini, who chose to try to force overtime, wasn't happy, despite the fact that it was a preseason game.
"It was a missed field goal from the 5-yard line to (force overtime)," Mangini said. "You have to make it. We have to be able to execute that play. That's pretty standard operating procedure. ... It's disappointing."
QUOTE TO NOTE: "They showed their appreciation. I know it can easily turn the other way. I've been booed in Lambeau Field before too. I don't want that to happen here. I just want people to know that I'm here for one reason (and) that's to help this team win. I'll do what I can. It was nice to see the acknowledgement from the fans." -- QB Brett Favre, on the standing ovation he received from the Jets fans when he trotted onto the field for the first time.
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