Mason

Taylor

No surprise here as Taylor hasn’t played since Week 14 due to a neck injury. The 21-year-old tight end finished his rookie season with 44 receptions, 369 yards and a touchdown. With improved health and quarterback play, things should be looking up for Taylor in 2026. He had a large role in the offense when healthy, it just wound up not producing much fantasy value due to how bad the offense was.

It would be surprising if Taylor played in Week 18’s game after two DNPs to open up the week. He hasn’t played since Week 14. We anticipate writing his season wrap-up blurb on Friday.

Taylor has now missed three straight games as a result of his neck injury. The rookie tight end, who has caught 44 passes for 369 yards and one touchdown this season, will have one more chance to suit up for Week 18’s season finale against the Bills, but after missing three-straight weeks of practice, he could be a long shot for next week. In addition to Taylor the Jets also ruled out EDGE Will McDonald (knee), DL Jay Tufele (foot), and LB Kiko Mauigoa (neck) for Week 17.

Taylor missed Week 16 with the neck issue and is on track to sit out at least one more game. He could ultimately miss the rest of the season, given that the Jets have nothing to play for over the next two weeks. Stone Smartt caught five passes for 34 yards in Taylor’s absence last week. He split reps with Jeremy Ruckert but does appear to be the preferred pass-catching option for the team. Smartt will sit on the TE2/3 border for Week 17.

Fields will function as the team’s emergency QB3 as Tyrod Taylor backs up Brady Cook, who’s making his second NFL start. Fields has likely played his last snap with the Jets. Mason Taylor (neck) being sidelined should open up more snaps and pass routes for TE Jeremy Ruckert, who this week signed a contract extension with the Jets.

Taylor will miss his second consecutive game with the neck injury. The news comes shortly after the front office signed 25-year-old TE Jeremy Ruckert to a two-year, $10 million extension, which is unfortunate. The Jets face the Patriots in Week 17. Hopefully, Taylor can return in time to face them.

The new deal includes a maximum of $11 million over the 2026 and 2027 seasons. Ruckert, drafted by the Jets in 2022, has 55 receptions on 75 targets over four NFL seasons, including 20 catches for 163 yards and a touchdown in 2025. Ruckert has seen some more involvement in the Jets offense of late, recording two receptions in each of the past three contests. The team’s commitment to Ruckert could raise questions about how the Jets see TE Mason Taylor, a rookie with 44 receptions for 369 yards and a score this season.

Taylor did not practice this week. The rookie tight end will miss his first game of the season, further adding to the offensive woes for the Jets. Rookie UDFA Brady Cook will be without two of the Jets’ top pass-catchers in Taylor and Garrett Wilson (knee), leaving backup TE Jeremy Ruckert to step up in Taylor’s absence. Outside of Breece Hall, all Jets players are looking like full fades in Week 15.

That makes two missed practices for Taylor. Brutal. The rookie tight end led the team in targets (eight) just last week and leads the team across the full season with 64. Theoretically, his potential absence would put more work on WR Adonai Mitchell’s plate, though Mitchell flopped by catching just 1-of-6 targets for 24 yards last week and he could be stuck catching passes from QB Brady Cook in Week 15 against the Jaguars.

Taylor was the top pass-catcher for the Jets, becoming a security blanket for Brady Cook. He was on the receiving end of Tyrod Taylor’s interception, tipping a pass that was a bit behind him for the Dolphins to pick off. With Cook in the game, Taylor saw intermediate and short-area targets in an effort to create yards in a simplified offense. The high volume is encouraging for Taylor, though his ceiling is capped in a rough quarterback situation and low-scoring offense. He is in the TE2 range for Week 15 against the Jaguars.