Jets S Chuck Clark believed to have serious knee injury, per sources: Who will

The Jets believe safety Chuck Clark has suffered a serious knee injury, team and league sources confirmed to The Athletic on Tuesday. Here’s what you need to know:

• Clark, who previously spent six seasons with the Ravens, was traded to the Jets in March. In exchange, Baltimore received a late-round 2024 draft pick.
• New York signed former Packers safety Adrian Amos on Tuesday.
• The Jets are waiting on an official ruling, and Clark is seeking a second opinion.

The Athletic’s instant analysis:

What will the Jets do without Clark?

The Jets viewed Clark as an upgrade at safety over Lamarcus Joyner, who they didn’t bring back this offseason. Defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich recently raved about how detailed and smart Clark has been during OTAs. But now, it looks like the Jets are going to have to plan for life without him.

The Jets signed Amos from the Packers, a clear reaction to the news that Clark had suffered a serious knee injury. The Jets weren’t in on Amos until recently — he visited with the Ravens on Monday — and the prospect of starting for New York right away likely appealed to him. In Baltimore, he would’ve been the third safety — which is why Clark wanted to be traded away from the Ravens in the first place.

Backstory

While playing for the Ravens, Clark finished second on the team with 101 total tackles in 2022. Baltimore selected the Virginia Tech standout with a sixth-round pick in the 2017 NFL Draft. He eventually played his way into the starting lineup and has only missed one game in the past four seasons.

Earlier in the offseason, Clark said that he requested a trade from the Ravens last year. When that wasn’t granted, he said, the two sides went with the understanding that he’d be traded this offseason. “I was ready to get out of there,” Clark said.

He admitted that part of his frustration in Baltimore was the Ravens’ decision to draft safety Kyle Hamilton in the first round last year — along with other issues.

“Just the situation I was put in, things that was said to me, the position I felt I was on the team, I wasn’t respected at the time,” Clark said. “So it was time for a change.”

Clark, 28, was the Ravens’ Walter Payton Man of the Year Award nominee last season.

Required reading

(Photo: Jonathan Jones / USA Today)