Nine days of preparation have turned into two. The Jets close a week that settled most of their leadership questions, kept their best running back on the practice field and left exactly one job hanging, and they do it with a flight to Nashville booked for the weekend.

The week in short: six captains named, a practice squad rebuilt almost from scratch, Breece Hall practicing in full, Geno Smith preparing for his first Jets start in a decade, a rookie receiver changing his number, and a kicking competition that nobody has ended yet.

What changed on the roster this week?

Leadership was settled and the bottom of the roster kept moving. The Jets named six captains for 2026, only one of whom the franchise drafted — a blunt illustration of how much of this team arrived from somewhere else. Below that, the churn continued: we tracked how the Jets rebuilt their practice squad in the single week since they first set it.

Where does the Week 1 injury picture stand?

Better than it looked a fortnight ago, with two exceptions. The headline is that Breece Hall was a full participant on the first Week 1 injury report, and he repeated it on Thursday. Edge rusher Joseph Ossai (foot) and wide receiver Tim Patrick (groin) did not practice on either day, and cornerback D’Angelo Ponds (calf) was limited on both. Game-status designations land on the Friday report.

What is still undecided two days out?

The placekicker, and only the placekicker. As of Thursday afternoon the Jets still had not named a Week 1 kicker, with Blake Grupe on the active roster, Jason Sanders on the practice squad and special teams coordinator Chris Banjo saying only that time will tell. Two rebuilding teams meeting in a one-o’clock opener is exactly the kind of afternoon that gets decided inside three points.

Which players did the week belong to?

Two of them, for very different reasons. Geno Smith will start for the Jets again, ten years on from the last time he did it, an arc almost nobody in the building expected to close. And Garrett Wilson called a playoff push “very realistic”, which is a notable thing for a fifth-year receiver on a team coming off a teardown to put his name to. Rookie Omar Cooper Jr. switched to No. 11 for his debut, reclaiming his high-school number.

What happened away from football?

The franchise marked a date that means more in this market than most. On the 25th anniversary, the Jets marked 25 years since 9/11 at Ground Zero, with ownership and players visiting the Memorial and Museum.

What happens next?

Tennessee, Sunday, 1:00 p.m. ET on CBS, with Robert Saleh on the opposite sideline for the first time since the Jets fired him. Our full Jets at Titans Week 1 preview covers the matchup, the injury report and the loose ends.

Frequently asked questions

When do the Jets play their first game of 2026?

Sunday, September 13, at 1:00 p.m. ET against the Titans at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, on CBS.

Who are the Jets captains for 2026?

The Jets named six captains this week. Only one of the six was drafted by the franchise, which says a good deal about how quickly the roster has turned over.

Has Breece Hall recovered from his groin injury?

Hall was a full participant in practice on both Wednesday and Thursday of Week 1 preparation, the strongest indication so far that the injury is behind him.

Have the Jets named a Week 1 kicker?

Not as of Thursday. Blake Grupe is on the active roster and Jason Sanders is on the practice squad, and the team has described the situation as an open competition.

Why did Omar Cooper Jr. change his jersey number?

The rookie wide receiver switched to No. 11, reclaiming the number he wore in high school in Indianapolis, ahead of his first regular-season game.

What did the Jets do for the 25th anniversary of 9/11?

Team ownership and players visited the National September 11 Memorial and Museum at Ground Zero to pay their respects on the 25th anniversary.