FLORHAM PARK, N.J. (AP) — New York Jets kicker Greg Zuerlein will be activated from injured reserve and will play against the Buffalo Bills on Sunday.
Interim coach Jeff Ulbrich announced Friday that Zuerlein is returning after missing seven games with a knee injury to his left, non-kicking leg. He had been shaky before the injury, but the Jets have since been unsettled at the position, with Riley Patterson, Spencer Shrader and Anders Carlson all filling in.
“He came back, looked healthy, kicked the ball well this week,” Ulbrich said of Zuerlein. “So, he’ll be our guy going forward here.”
Zuerlein is officially listed as questionable to play, but was a full participant the final two practices.
Wide receiver Davante Adams is also questionable, but likely to play after participating on a limited basis Friday because of a hip ailment that held him out Thursday.
Adams, acquired from Las Vegas in October, has 56 receptions for 719 yards and six touchdowns on 94 targets in nine games for the Jets. He’s 72 yards away from his fifth straight 1,000-yard season and sixth of his career.
“I think at this point, it would be a crying shame to not be able to get that,” he said.
Adams and Aaron Rodgers are also tied with Miami’s Dan Marino and Mark Clayton for the third-most TD connections (82), including playoffs, by a quarterback-wide receiver duo.
Rodgers needs one touchdown pass to become the fifth player in NFL history to get 500 in the regular season — and Adams said he would “love” to be on the receiving end of the milestone.
“I got 200, I got 400,” he said of Rodgers’ TD passes while they were teammates in Green Bay. “So it would be dope to get 500 as well. I think his 200th was my first, so we got some special connections in the past, so it’d be great.”
Adams said he was injured early in the game against the Rams, but was still able to catch seven passes for 68 yards and a touchdown. He said he was optimistic about his chances of playing at Buffalo.
“We’re still working on it,” Adams said. “We’re treating it, trying to get it right so we can hopefully be there and ready by game time.”
Cornerback Sauce Gardner is also questionable with a hamstring injury that sidelined him in the second half of New York’s loss to the Los Angeles Rams.
Zuerlein, who re-signed with the Jets last offseason on a two-year deal, made just nine of 15 field goal attempts and missed one extra point in the first eight games this year. He had been one of the NFL’s most consistently reliable kickers the previous two seasons with the Jets.
Patterson kicked in one game after the Jets placed Zuerlein on IR. Shrader also kicked in one game before he was signed off the practice squad by Kansas City. Carlson had been the kicker the past five games, but missed a field goal and an extra point against the Rams and the Jets signed Greg Joseph to the practice squad to provide competition.
Ulbrich said earlier in the week Zuerlein would also be in the mix after a long layoff.
“I think sometimes that can be powerful, an opportunity just to take a deep breath, get his body healthy again and get a restart,” Ulbrich said. “So I’m excited for him to do his thing these last two games and really demonstrate to everybody who he is as a kicker.”
Defensive tackle Quinnen Williams could return after missing last week with a hamstring injury. He was listed as questionable and was limited at practice all week.
Also questionable but expected to play are right tackle Morgan Moses (knee), safety Tony Adams (ankle), cornerback Michael Carter II (back), defensive end Haason Reddick (neck) and defensive lineman Braiden McGregor (ankle).
Defensive tackle Leki Fotu was ruled out with a knee injury.
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