Jets’ Robert Saleh, Mekhi Becton comment on OT’s ‘nagging foot injury’

Offensive tackle Mekhi Becton is currently dealing with plantar fasciitis and won’t be participating in the Jets’ mandatory minicamp.

The Jets do not have their starting left tackle and 2020 first-round draft pick for their mandatory minicamp, which began Tuesday.

Mekhi Becton is currently dealing with plantar fasciitis (inflammation of the tissue connecting the heel bone to the toes) and has been advised not to participate in the specific period of the Jets’ offseason program.

Surgery shouldn’t be required though, and on Tuesday, Robert Saleh assured reporters Becton should be good to go for training camp late next month.

“We’re very confident he’ll be ready to go. He’s just got a nagging foot injury, it’s not worth it to put him out there and make something so small a lot worse,” the rookie head coach told Darryl Slater of NJ Advance Media. “We’re not worried about his availability for training camp.”

But despite the fact Becton should be healthy to prepare for and subsequently play in the Week 1 game against Carolina, sitting out isn’t the easiest situation for the young lineman.

“It’s been a little frustrating [not practicing], but at the end of the day, I’m just trying to get myself right and myself ready so I know I’m going to be ready by the season,” Becton told the media Tuesday. “I’ve been getting the mental reps and getting the plays mentally down, so that’s the good part.”

One of the issues with the injury is that it could partly be due to Becton’s weight, which has raised concerns in the past.

Mekhi, however, is taking the necessary steps to solve any potential complications while assuring his foot is “feeling good.”

“I feel like I’m at a good weight right now. I’m doing extra things on my own to keep it that way — eating the right things, I got a chef. Just doing everything right to maintain the weight concerns that people have with me,” he said. “I would say I’m doing everything in my power to keep it down.”