GREEN BAY, Wis. — Sunday’s game against the New York Jets couldn’t have started much worse for the Green Bay Packers.
Starting receiver Jayden Reed and right tackle Zach Bako-Bewele were both carted off the field at MetLife Stadium on back-to-back plays after sustaining injuries that will likely keep them shelved indefinitely.
Jordan Love swung a pass out to Reed on a bubble screen, and he was able to advance upfield four yards before absorbing a hit from Jets linebacker Demario Davis. The contact didn’t appear to be malicious, but Reed crumpled awkwardly and remained motionless on the field for several moments. It was later revealed that Reed is dealing with a neck injury.
The Packers’ bench emptied and spent that period surrounding Reed before the cart came out. He was placed on a backboard and taken into the locker room; a brief pitstop before Reed is presumably taken to a nearby hospital.
It’s the latest setback for Reed, who missed 10 games last season with a broken collarbone and a Jones fracture.
The Packers didn’t have much time to recalibrate themselves before Bako-Bewele followed suit. On the ensuing play, Love attempted a third-down pass to a wide-open Matthew Golden over the middle, but the ball rocketed straight through his hands and ended up incomplete. While protecting Love, Bako-Bewele suffered a non-contact knee injury and also had to be carted off the field.
Both players were promptly ruled out by the team, which wasn’t a surprise. That, however, is a grave indication of the nature of their injuries.
Bako-Bewele is playing in just his second game since returning from the partially torn patellar tendon he sustained in December. He’s played in both games to begin the regular season despite being a limited participant in practice each of the last two weeks.
The Packers replaced Bako-Bewele at right tackle versus the Jets with Anthony Belton, a second-round pick last spring. He spent eight games as the Packers’ starting right guard as a rookie, but spent this past summer repping extensively at right tackle in the event that Bako-Bewele wasn’t going to be ready to play by the start of the season.
Zachary Jacobson is the author of The Packer Dispatch. He is entering his 12th season covering the Green Bay Packers after spending seven as the Editor-in-Chief of Packer Report. He is a member of the Pro Football Writers of America. Follow him on Twitter @zachjacobson or contact him via email at itszachariahj@gmail.com.