Haason Reddick could debut for Jets on Sunday vs. Patriots, coach says

FLORHAM PARK, N.J. — Haason Reddick’s debut with the New York Jets could come as soon as Sunday against the New England Patriots.

The star edge rusher ended his lengthy contract holdout when he reported to the team on Monday and participated in the walk-through practice on Wednesday.

“I would anticipate he plays,” Jets interim coach Jeff Ulbrich said Wednesday. “He’s an experienced player. He’s played in a similar defense to ours. So I think as far as the schematic stuff that he’s got to get caught up on, I don’t think that’s going to be a huge struggle for him. So now it’s just seeing where he’s at physically.”

The former Eagles edge rusher was removed from the reserve/did not report list on Monday, and the Jets were granted a two-game roster exemption by the NFL. That gives New York two games to assess Reddick while not needing to activate him and make a corresponding roster move.

But that could be moot if Reddick feels good physically this week.

“If he’s ready, we’re going to roll,” Ulbrich said. “Because, obviously, we need him. He’s a huge part of the success that we will have on defense.”

A former Temple standout from Camden, Reddick was acquired from the Eagles in March to add some punch to New York‘s pass rush. But he hadn’t been at the Jets’ facility since April 1, when he passed his physical and made the trade official.

And that began one of the more bizarre NFL contract holdouts in recent memory.

The 30-year-old Reddick was due to make $14.25 million in nonguaranteed base salary in the final year of his contract when he asked to be traded from Philadelphia because the Eagles declined to give him a new deal. The Jets acquired Reddick with the understanding he’d play on his existing contract before negotiating a new one with him, but the edge rusher declined to show up for mandatory workouts, minicamp and training camp — and then was placed on the reserve/did not report list on July 25, the second day of the team’s training camp.

He requested to be traded on Aug. 12, but general manager Joe Douglas quickly nixed that, saying New York would not grant his wish.

Reddick recently switched agents, and new representatives Drew Rosenhaus and Ryan Matha spoke to the Jets about allowing Reddick to pursue a trade, which New York granted. But then the sides came to an agreement Sunday on an adjusted contract for this season, with the goal of working on a long-term deal.

Ulbrich said he has had “fantastic” conversations with Reddick since he reported to the facility.

“When he came in here, tried to alleviate right away any sense of like anybody would be looking at you sideways,” Ulbrich said. “The defense embraced him; the team embraced him. Excited to get him integrated into what we do. He’s excited to get started, so it’s an exciting time for all of us.”

Ulbrich said the Jets need to be “diligent” with Reddick the next few days to properly assess his readiness, but the team is optimistic the edge rusher will make his debut against the Patriots.

“Everything he’s said to me is he’s been conditioning. He’s been working,” Ulbrich said. “And not just the conditioning. He’s been doing football stuff. So I’m excited to see where he’s at the next couple days.”