OAKLAND — New York Jets
running back Leon Washington broke his right leg in the first quarter
against the Oakland Raiders on Sunday and underwent surgery after the
game.
Washington went down on his only
carry of the day when a defender rolled up on his right leg after a
6-yard run. Teammates said the bone broke through the skin, and it was
visible on the field. Washington was helped off the field by two
trainers and then taken away on a cart.
He was diagnosed with a broken right
fibula and underwent surgery immediately after the Jets' 38-0 victory.
The team said he would be out indefinitely.
"That's unfortunate," coach Rex Ryan
said. "It's obviously a severe injury, but hopefully he'll be joining
us sooner than later."
Washington, who made the Pro Bowl
last season as a kick returner, is also New York's second-leading
rusher with 330 yards on 71 carries. He also has 15 catches for 131
yards and takes direct snaps when the team runs out of the seminole
formation.
In his absence, rookie Shonn Greene
excelled, carrying 19 times for 144 yards and two touchdowns. Greene, a
third-round pick out of Iowa, had only eight carries for 31 yards
coming into the game.
Starter Thomas Jones ran for 121 on
26 carries as New York finished with 316 yards on the ground. After
gaining 318 yards rushing last week, the Jets became the sixth team to
top 300 in consecutive games, and first since Buffalo did it in 1975.
"Anytime we have a game like that,
you want to cherish and enjoy it, but it's kind of hard to do that with
Leon's injury," Jones said. "I think a lot of the team is devastated.
He's one of my best friends. He's a great teammate and a great person.
From the time he left the game, every couple plays I kept thinking
about him. I haven't stopped thinking about it, and my prayers are
going out to his family."
It's the second major injury to a key
player for the Jets in as many games. Nose tackle Kris Jenkins was lost
for the season after tearing the anterior cruciate ligament in his left
knee in New York's 16-13 overtime loss to Buffalo last Sunday.