ASHBURN — Coach Jay Gruden started his regular Thursday press conference with a disclaimer.
“You might want to get comfortable for the injury report,” Gruden said, drawing a laugh from the crowd of reporters.
The truth is, there’s nothing too funny about the depth issues the Washington Redskins could be dealing with on Sunday against the New York Jets.
Left tackle Trent Williams, center Kory Lichtensteiger, tight end Jordan Reed and cornerbacks DeAngelo Hall and Chris Culliver all sat out of Thursday’s practice.
Williams sustained a neck injury in Sunday’s 25-19 overtime loss to the Atlanta Falcons and was limited in Wednesday’s practice. Lichtensteiger battled through the game with a broken thumb and a left shoulder injury and was also limited on Wednesday.
“Obviously, you’d like to get them reps out here, but if you’re going to be able to get away without participating during a week it’s those guys,” Gruden said.
“We want to make sure they’re 100 percent. They’re feeling good about their strength, their mobility and all that stuff for them to play. They’re both obviously dealing with some issues and we’ve got to make sure they’re taken care of before they step it up.”
On Wednesday, Williams said he would play, if given the chance. Gruden also called Lichtensteiger one of the toughest players on the team. Few knew Lichtensteiger had played through his injuries until after Sunday’s game.
However, if Williams or Lichtensteiger cannot play against the Jets, the Redskins will turn to Josh LeRibeus at center and Ty Nsekhe at left tackle.
Nsekhe has not started a game. LeRibeus has just one career start. Spencer Long made his first two starts in the last two games, filling in for left guard Shawn Lauvao, who has been placed on injured reserve. That leaves rookie right guard Brandon Scherff and second-year right tackle Morgan Moses as the most experienced starters against a second-ranked Jets defense.
LeRibeus and Nsekhe took reps with the first-team starters in practice on Thursday. LeRibeus, a guard, started taking reps at center during offseason workouts when the Redskins cut right guard and backup center Chris Chester.
“It just feels really good getting reps with [quarterback] Kirk [Cousins],” LeRibeus said. “It’s feeling good. I’m staying after practice everyday, just want to get it to the point where the snaps, I don’t even think about it.
“I want to be a perfectionist. If I mess up one, I’ll spend 10 minutes after practice.”
The Redskins’ injuries stretch beyond the offensive line. Culliver, who sat out of the game against the Falcons because of a left knee injury, missed Thursday’s practice after being limited Wednesday. Gruden said the cornerback is still having problems pushing off his knee.
Reed is still in the league’s concussion protocol and Hall remains sidelined by a sprained right big toe.
Running back Matt Jones (sprained toe), wide receivers Andre Roberts (strained quadriceps) and DeSean Jackson (strained left hamstring) and defensive end Stephen Paea (lower back) were all limited.
Jackson, who is trying to return after injuring the hamstring in Week 1, had ramped up his workload but had a minor setback.
“He went through a couple of drills and had little issues here and there, so he’s still up in the air,” Gruden said.
• Anthony Gulizia can be reached at agulizia@washingtontimes.com.
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