Jets' Wallace Wright turns into top special team player after injury- AP

Jets' Wallace Wright turns into top special team player after injury
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Friday, October 17th 2008, 10:41 PM


Antonelli/News

Wallace Wright
FLORHAM PARK, N.J. - Wallace Wright cried in the middle of the football field, unable to stop the tears from flowing.

Wright had just made a big catch for North Carolina against Duke three years ago, but his left ankle was broken. While the trainers rushed out to check on him, Wright's mind flooded with nightmarish thoughts.

"I wasn't crying because of the pain," the New York Jets' young wide receiver recalled Friday. "I was crying because I didn't think I was ever going to be able to play again. I had big plans for myself. I graduated, but I still wanted to play football."

That's what drove Wright to rehabilitate so rigorously, sometimes three times a day, in the months following the injury. It's the same type of desperate determination that has turned him into one of the NFL's top special teams players with 12 tackles in five games.

"He doesn't mind contact and he's a physical guy who just does whatever it takes to get his job done," long snapper James Dearth said. "You can count on him. He makes plays all over the place."

At North Carolina, Wright walked on to the team as a freshman and earned a spot on special teams. He worked his way up the depth chart and played wide receiver, returned kicks and was a gunner on special teams. The versatility earned him a scholarship and lots of popularity. He was elected special teams captain as a senior and was tagged with the nickname "Smooth" for his dapper attire.

"The guys here don't know about that one yet," Wright said with a chuckle.

The Tar Heels appeared headed toward a BCS bowl bid during Wright's senior season, and then came the injury. North Carolina's season ended the following week when it lost at Virginia Tech.

Wright, whose father, also named Wallace, played baseball in Montreal's system in the 1970s, was determined to give himself at least a chance to play again. He had the ankle operated on soon after the injury, and carries around a few surgical souvenirs.

"I still have the hardware," he said, smiling. "The screws and the plate and everything else are still in there now."

Wright was back working out 2 1/2 months after the injury - "record-breaking time, man" - and was finally able to run about a week before his pro workout at the end of March 2006. He ran a 4.5 and caught a few teams' attention.

"I chose to come here," he said, "and now the rest is history."

Wright earned a tryout with the Jets, signed a contract after minicamp, was cut before the season and then signed to the practice squad - all while dealing with the news that his mother, Darlene, had cancer and needed a bone marrow transplant.

"She's my inspiration," Wright said, adding that she's now in remission.

Wright was signed to the Jets' active roster late that season, and has been making a mark on special teams since.

"What I like about Wallace is he was determined to stay from the second he got in that (rookie) room," coach Eric Mangini said. "It's hard to do. There are guys with free agent contracts, rookie free agent contracts. You just come in and you have 48 hours to make an impression. He made that initial impression and then he got another 48 hours. He keeps buying time."

And making tackles. He had six special teams takedowns as a rookie and 16 last season while catching six passes for 87 yards. Wright has really emerged this season, with three or more special teams tackles in three games.

"I want to make the tackle," Wright said with a deadly serious look. "I don't want anybody else to make the tackle. I want to make it. I know it's a team effort and everything like that and I love my teammates, but I want the tackle. I have the mentality that I'm going to be the first guy down the field and I'm going to make the tackle every time."

The special teamers know the opportunities for more playing time largely hinge on how well they perform on kickoffs and punts. So the competition between Wright and his teammates is fierce.

"I always tell him to stay off my tackles," said a smiling Cody Spencer, who's tied for second with eight tackles. "It seems like any time I get a tackle, he's right there in on it or close to me. We're always giving each other a hard time about tackles. That's a big deal. Usually, throughout the game, he'll come find me or I come find him and we say, 'How many you got?"'

Wright's left ankle still reminds him of how lucky he is to be in the NFL, especially on cold days. He hopes for more chances to run patterns and catch passes, but until then, he'll just keep hitting everyone he can.

"I have a great job, have a great time doing it and I've done this since college," he said. "That's my role on this team, so I might as well be the best at it. My whole thing is that I want to be the best while I'm out there and just have fun doing it."
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