Jets' Petty says chest feeling better, expects to play
FLORHAM PARK, N.J. (AP) Bryce Petty's bruised chest is feeling better, and the chocolate chip cookies he received from an apologetic teammate should help with the healing process.
The New York Jets quarterback was injured last Saturday night when he was sandwiched by Miami's Cameron Wake and Ndamukong Suh while completing a 28-yard pass to Robby Anderson on the first play of the fourth quarter in New York's 34-13 loss.
X-rays at the stadium were negative, as was a CT scan Monday.
''Shoot, I thought something was messed up in there,'' Petty said Tuesday. ''Luckily, everything was good.''
Petty and coach Todd Bowles called it ''a miscommunication,'' and it appeared center Wesley Johnson might have made a mistake with the snap count - since he was the only one on the Jets' offensive line who moved. That created clear lanes for both Wake and Suh to crunch the quarterback .
''It won't happen again,'' a smiling Petty said. ''I had a batch of cookies on my hood from Wes, so that was a really nice gesture. He still owes me dinner, though.''
When asked if the cookies were homemade, Petty said he believed they were.
''So, it was a real apology, yeah,'' he said, smiling. ''It was nice.''
Petty said he practiced fully Tuesday and couldn't foresee anything keeping him from playing Saturday at New England.
Bowles said the team will monitor him throughout the week, and Petty will start if he continues to show improvement.
''I just couldn't imagine this season ending that way,'' Petty said. ''So, I was really happy to see that everything was negative, everything was good. It was a good hit - hits, plural. I'll probably put that up in my man cave at some point. So, if I can take shots from those two dudes right there, I think I'll be all right.''
After watching film of the play, though, Petty was surprised he wasn't injured worse.
''I mean, shoot, I had two of probably the strongest dudes I've ever been around hit me at the same time,'' Petty said. ''But that's football. I try not to watch it too much.''
Bowles was also initially concerned that the injury was worse.
''Any time you don't go back in the game, you have a serious injury,'' he said. ''But not to have any positive damage done, that's a good thing. This is a matter of soreness and how much your pain tolerance is and how much you can or can't do.''
Petty said he feels a lot better after the hit ''kind of knocked the breath out of me.'' He has thrown deep passes in the past few days and been able to do so without any pain. Petty added that his chest doesn't hurt at all when he touches it.
''So, a lot of progress,'' he said.
Petty said Jets head athletic trainer John Mellody is working on some protective padding for him to wear in the game.
''I was watching `A Knight's Tale' the other night and they have, I don't know what the knights wore when they were jousting, but I think I might do that,'' Petty said, trying to keep a straight face. ''Nah, I think we have some Kevlar or something.''
Petty is 75 of 130 for 809 yards with three touchdowns and six interceptions this season, which includes his first three NFL starts.
He has already been sacked 11 times and is going through the growing pains - literally - of a young quarterback trying to learn in the NFL. Reading defenses, better ball security and thinking faster on his feet are all on the docket, as is trying to avoid taking hard hits.
''If anything, it gives me more of an appreciation to get the ball out fast,'' Petty said, ''and that's something I've got to do.''
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