JETS’ LINEBACKER CALVIN PACE TO HAVE FOOT SURGERY

The New York Jets received some bad news on the eve of the NFL regular season—linebacker Calvin Pace, the team’s best pass rusher in 2009 will need foot surgery and will miss the start of the 2010 campaign.  Current prognosis has Pace out 4 to 6 weeks, though the Jets stressed that they’ll defer any sort of projection on his return until after the surgery is performed Monday.  Renowned foot surgeon Robert Anderson will perform the procedure in Charlotte, North Carolina.  Pace was injured in the third quarter of Friday’s 16-11 exhibition loss to the Washington Redskins.

This will be the second straight year that Pace will be unavailable at the start of the regular season.  In 2009 he missed four games due to a suspension for a violation of the NFL’s performance-enhancing substance policy.  Pace maintains that the violation was due to an over-the-counter dietary supplement he took, not knowing it contained a substance that violated the NFL's policy.  The Jets started 3-1 in his absence, and he played well upon his return recording eight sacks in 12 regular season games.

Pace said that he’ll definitely miss the season opener against Baltimore on September 13, but that he’s confident the defense will persevere in his absence:

“I definitely will miss the first game. That’s safe to say. Beyond that, I don’t really have an idea. That’s the beauty of our defense. I’m still upbeat, man. I really am.”

Rex Ryan called Pace’s injury a big loss for the team:

"He's got something with his foot. I would expect him to be out a few weeks. It's a big loss, there's no doubt. But we're fortunate. We have a lot of depth at that position."

36 year old pass rush specialist Jason Taylor will see more playing time in Pace’s absence, and the Jets are thinking about signing free agent Adalius Thomas.  Thomas is a good friend of Pace’s and a favorite of head coach Rex Ryan from his stint with the Baltimore Ravens.  Thomas spent the past three seasons with the Patriots, but was released by the time earlier this year.  

For his part, Taylor is planning to make the most of the opportunity:

"As a player, you wanna play. Whatever the case is, whatever the team needs you to do, you go do. Does it take a toll on you? Sure, it takes a little bit of a toll. It's a very physical game. But you can take care of yourself throughout the week and have plenty of gas in the tank come Sunday.”

"I've been doing it for a long time. It won't be my first rodeo."

The Jets conclude their preseason schedule next Thursday on the road against the Philadelphia Eagles.  They’ll start the regular season as one of two Monday Night Football games in Week 1,  hosting the Baltimore Ravens.  The Jets are a -3 point NFL betting favorite with the total set at 37.