Braelon Allen will start as the New York Jets' top running back after Breece Hall was injured with a quad strain in Week 3, which could sideline him for up to a week. The Jets are currently struggling with an average of 3.3 yards per carry, ranking last in the NFL. This situation provides Allen an opportunity to prove himself as a "workhorse back," showcasing his strength and speed after recovering from a major injury last season that ended prematurely.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-10-03,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
The New York Jets are facing a tough challenge as they prepare for their Week 4 game against the Chicago Bears. Breece Hall, their star running back, is out with a quad injury and may be sidelined for at least one more week. This forces rookie Braelon Allen to take on increased responsibilities in the backfield, alongside backup Isaiah Davis. The Jets are already struggling with rushing efficiency, averaging just 3.3 yards per carry this season.
Additionally, the team is without several other key players: WR Adonai Mitchell (finger), OL Dylan Parham (knee), TE Mason Taylor (thumb), and LB Kiko Mauigoa (quad). This leaves a thin roster particularly short-handed at receiver behind Garrett Wilson. Rookie tight end Kenyon Sadiq could see increased playing time, as he broke out with seven catches for 105 yards and a touchdown in Week 3.
In contrast to their offensive struggles, the Jets' defense faces familiarity against Bears head coach Ben Johnson, who was an assistant alongside Jets head coach Aaron Glenn during their time together in Detroit. Despite these challenges, Jets quarterback Geno Smith remains optimistic about victory if he can stay upright and avoid pressure from Chicago's defensive front.
Written for “Jets vs Bears Week 4 NFL” on 2026-10-05,
grounded in this article and the 19 other(s) covering the same event.
Braelon Allen was honest ahead of the season about how important Year 3 was for him and proving his worth.
asserted
Year → prove → worth
A potentially significant moment in his young career has arrived.
asserted
moment → arrive → career
Take flight with the Jets
Text with Brian Costello all season as he brings Sports+ subscribers the latest Jets intel from on the field and off.
asserted
he → take → field
tRY IT NOWWith Breece Hall (quad) out for Sunday’s Week 4 game against the Bears in Chicago, Allen becomes the Jets’ top running back.
asserted
Allen → try → Chicago
Hall, who suffered the injury in the Week 3 loss to the Lions, is considered week to week, meaning there’s a possibility Allen will have more than one game as the lead rusher.
asserted
Allen → suffer → rusher
Hall’s injury is a major blow to a Jets running game that was already struggling this year — they are averaging 3.3 yards per carry, which ranks 30th in the NFL.
asserted
which → struggle → NFL
But Allen during training camp said he wanted to “prove myself as a workhorse back.”
asserted
he → say → back
“I’m an all-down back, I’m a three-down back, I’m more versatile than I get credit for,” Allen told The Post after practice Friday.
asserted
Allen → ’m → practice
“I’m just hoping I continue to get more and more opportunities to show that.”
asserted
I → hop → that
Allen’s ability to prove himself was stolen from him just four weeks into last season when he sprained his MCL after taking a hit while returning a kick against the Dolphins.
asserted
he → prove → Dolphins
It required surgery and ended his season.
asserted
It → require → season
“It sucked,” Allen said.
asserted
Allen → suck → ?
Kind of my season being taken away while I was kind of just getting into my groove and felt like I was figuring it out a little bit, it was tough.
asserted
it → take → it
I’ve grown so much from it.
asserted
I → grow → it
“There’s definitely dark times through that process and I just knew — you have to decide how you want to come out of it on the other side.
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you → ’ → side
I wanted to make sure that I was gonna come back better, bigger, faster, stronger and more explosive.
asserted
I → want → ?
That was the mindset that I had, was just to get through it better.
asserted
I → have → it
The injury abruptly ended the progress he made during a promising rookie season two years ago, when he rushed for 334 yards and two touchdowns.
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he → end → yards
And the Jets bringing Hall back on a three-year deal worth $45.75 million this past offseason meant Allen remained firmly No. 2 in the pecking order.
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Allen → bring → order
But for the moment, it’s his show.
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it → ’ → moment
“Everyone knows who Breece is as a player,” Allen said.
asserted
Allen → know → player
I’m not trying to replace or be him in any way.
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I → try → way
I want to go out there and make my own name.”
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I → want → name
Allen presents a much different profile than Hall, one of the league’s best dual-threat running backs.
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Allen → present → backs
Allen, at 6-foot-1 and 235 pounds compared to the 5-11, 217-pound Hall, is bigger and more of a bruiser.
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Allen → compare → bruiser
“He’s a strong, physical, downhill runner,” guard Joe Tippmann, who blocked for Allen at Wisconsin and is again blocking for him with the Jets, told The Post.
asserted
who → ’ → Post
“I think what a lot of guys oversee is that he’s fast.
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he → think → guys
He’s got the speed to get around the edge to make those open-field cuts and be able to break those tackles.
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He → get → tackles
I’ve always said with Braelon, you can’t one-arm tackle that guy.
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you → say → guy
You gotta get two hands on him and wrap him up.”
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You → got → him
The Jets rushed for just 58 and 67 yards the last two weeks, respectively, both losses — a letdown after they imposed themselves on the ground with 152 rushing yards during their season-opening win over the Titans.
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they → rush → Titans
They’re now without their star running back, but the offensive line believes it’s identified the issue.
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it → ’re → issue
“We’re kind of just getting caught up a little bit on the movement, the D-line’s moving and stuff,” Tippmann said.
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Tippmann → catch → movement
“We just gotta go back to our basics of running off the ball, getting up on the double teams, regardless of if they’re moving or not.
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they → got → teams
We can’t just sit there and anticipate, ‘Oh, they’re gonna move.’
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they → sit → ?
We just gotta go, go get off the ball and go get on them.
asserted
We → got → them
That’s what really opens up those lanes.
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what → ’ → lanes
I think we’re trending in the right direction.
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we → think → direction
Last week, we definitely took a step back in the run game.
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we → take → game
We’ll have bad games there, but it’s trending in the right direction.”
asserted
it → have → direction
…and 1 more, not listed.
The Aporia
