EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) -- Chad Pennington landed hard on the
turf after being tackled from behind and immediately clutched his
left wrist.
Just like that, another starting quarterback was seriously
injured in the preseason.
Pennington dislocated and fractured his left wrist in the Jets'
15-14 victory over the New York Giants on Saturday night and is out
indefinitely.
He was tackled from behind by Brandon Short after throwing away
a pass with just under two minutes remaining in the first half and
landed awkwardly on his wrist.
Pennington had X-rays at Giants Stadium, which revealed the
fracture-dislocation, and was taken to Lenox Hill Hospital in New
York for immediate surgery. The Jets do not know how long their
starting quarterback will be out, and said Pennington's status
would be determined after surgery.
Vinny Testaverde, who turns 40 in November, entered the game in
place of Pennington.
"We ran a blitz ... I came up the middle untouched," Short
said. "Chad rolled to his right. I must have grabbed his legs
right as he threw the ball, and he fell down on his arms and was
just lying there.
"I asked him if he was all right, and he just kept lying there
until the trainers came out. It's unfortunate to see someone go
down like that."
This is the second time in as many weeks a starting quarterback
was injured in an exhibition game. Last week, Falcons starter
Michael Vick broke his right leg against Baltimore and is expected
to be out at least six weeks.
"It's really unfortunate because we don't want to see anyone
get hurt," said Giants defensive end Michael Strahan, who did not
play because of a toe injury. "For him to get hurt like that in a
preseason game is just a shame."
Pennington replaced Testaverde in the fifth game of last season.
Testaverde started 1-3, and Jets coach Herman Edwards decided a
change was necessary.
The young backup engineered a tremendous turnaround for the
Jets, who ended up winning the AFC East and finishing the
regular-season 9-7 after a 2-5 start.
Pennington led the NFL with a 104.2 passer rating and 68.9
completion percentage. He finished 275-of-399 for 3,120 yards with
22 touchdowns and six interceptions.
His favorite target was Laveranues Coles, who left in the
offseason for the Washington Redskins. In the preseason, Pennington
was building chemistry with new addition Curtis Conway, along with
Santana Moss and Wayne Chrebet.
Against the Giants, Pennington was 4-of-12 for 58 yards before
getting hurt.
Testaverde, meanwhile, took his new role as backup with class.
But the 17-year veteran saw limited time in the preseason before
Pennington's injury. In the first three games, he played one series
and went 1-of-3 for 8 yards and an interception.
He saw his first extended action Saturday and finished 5-of-11
for 48 yards.
Now Testaverde becomes the starter again. Two weeks ago, Edwards
said he wanted to figure out a way to get Testaverde to 40,000
yards passing. Testaverde is 442 yards away from the mark, which
only eight others have reached.
Even though they lost, the Giants (0-3) finally got their
offense going. After scoring just one touchdown in their first two
preseason games, they got touchdowns on consecutive possessions.
Kerry Collins guided a 21-play, 95-yard drive that ate up 9:58
of the first quarter. Collins threw a 1-yard touchdown pass to
rookie tight end Visanthe Shiancoe on fourth-and-goal to start the
scoring.
On their next possession, Collins threw an 88-yard touchdown
pass to Ike Hilliard to make it 14-0. Hilliard had an outstanding
game, catching seven passes for 150 yards.
Collins also looked good and played into the third quarter,
finishing 13-of-23 for 198 yards with two touchdowns and one
interception.
Nothing went right for the Jets (2-2). They wanted to work on
their running game against the Giants, but starter Curtis Martin
had 10 carries for just 14 yards. The Giants dominated the first
half, and the Jets' only points came on a 40-yard field goal by
Doug Brien.
Brien kicked two other field goals, and the Jets took the lead
in the fourth quarter when Chad Brinker scored on a 2-yard run.
^Notes:@ Several others were injured Saturday. For the Jets: DE John
Abraham (back spasms) and T Chris Smith (ankle). For the Giants: T
Chris Bober (ribs), TE Marcellus Rivers (thigh bruise), LB Nick
Greisen (hamstring), G Sean O'Connor (sprained ankle); LB Dhani
Jones (sprained ankle).