With his football career potentially over, we look back on Bilal Powell’s best moments with the New York Jets.
New York Jets running back Bilal Powell was placed on injured reserve on Wednesday, a neck injury that requires surgery ending not only his 2018 season, but potentially his football career as well.
Powell quietly amassed a solid NFL career with the Jets, tallying 3,446 rushing yards, good for 10th in franchise history, two away from passing Adrian Murrell for ninth. Below, we take a look at Powell’s five finest moments as a New York Jet:
5) 11/13/16: Ramming It Up
Powell’s first of two career multi-touchdown games came against the Rams during their St. Louis incarnation, but it was a loss against the Los Angeles version that provided one of the more exciting touchdowns of his career. Early in the second quarter and the Jets down 3-0, Bryce Petty completed a pass to Brandon Marshall, who immediately tossed the ball to an uncovered Powell, high-stepping into the end zone for six. Powell wound up with 89 yards on the afternoon, splitting rushing duties with Matt Forte, but the Jets lost the game 9-6, Powell’s touchdown being the only scoring.
4) 12/9/12: One-Man Broadway Show
Powell’s unofficial breakout party perhaps came in a late-season road game against the Jacksonville Jaguars in his second season. With the Jets attempting to remain in the playoff hunt, they were struggling against the 2-10 Jaguars, up only 10-3 late in the third quarter. But a seven-play, 46-yard drive to the end zone that ended in a de facto game-winning touchdown in a 17-10 win. That drive consisted entirely of Powell runs, including the four-yard score up the middle in the early portions of the fourth that doubled the Jets’ slim lead. Powell ended up with 78 yards on the afternoon, his high for the season.
3) 12/6/15: A Giant Performance
Powell might’ve been at his best when the Jets needed an extra period. The last Giants-Jets showdown could’ve been a runaway victory for the boys in blue, but Powell’s touchdown kept things tied up, scoring on a 25-yard touchdown pass from Ryan Fitzpatrick. The Giants would wind up with 20 points in the period, but Powell’s six-pointer helped keep things at a manageable pace for the Jets. Additionally, on the Jets’ final drive in regulation, Powell’s 12-yard catch from Fitzpatrick, part of a 33-yard performance on the trek, set up the game-tying touchdown to Marshall. The Jets would win the game 23-20.
2) 10/1/17: Jag Drag
Powell’s most prolific New York performances in terms of yards each came in overtime victories, his career-best showing coming against the Jaguars at MetLife Stadium last season. Powell put up a whopping 190 yards of total offense, including 163 on the ground, en route to the Jets’ 23-20 victory. The Jets got their victory against the eventual AFC finalist off to a roaring start thanks to Powell, who tied the game early on with a 75-yard rush to daylight. Later in the first half, a 33-yard Powell rush set up a Chandler Catanzaro field goal.
1) 12/11/16: San Francisco Treat
Powell provided some levity in a game whose contestants entered with a combined four wins. The Jets’ first visit to Levi’s Stadium ended in victory thanks to Powell, who put up what was then a career-high 145 yards, going head-to-head with the San Francisco 49ers’ Carlos Hyde in a rushing showcase that went into overtime. Though Hyde picked up 195 yards, it was Powell who would deal the victorious final blow, rushing for 42 yards on the game’s final drive alone. The final 19 went toward the game-ending touchdown, one of two on the day, as the Jets earned a 23-17 victory.
