Jets coach Robert Saleh responds to disgruntled tackle Mekhi Becton

New York Jets coach Robert Saleh declined to criticize disgruntled tackle Mekhi Becton.

Becton attacked Saleh’s decision to play him at right tackle in a recent Newsday article, saying the Jets’ choice to line him up at right tackle resulted in him injuring his knee.

“I’m not going to get into the negative of all of it,” Saleh said to reporters at the Jets’ OTA session on Tuesday. “It’s not about finger pointing. What I’m focused on, though, is over the last six months Mekhi has done an unbelievable job of getting his weight down to where it’s a healthy weight that’s sustainable. He’s been available during OTAs. He’s been prompt and very diligent with regards to meetings. I think he’s probably in the best shape of his life. He’s got a smile on his face and he’s attacking it. That’s what is most important.

“Whatever happened in the past, happened in the past. It’s not about finger pointing. It’s about moving forward. If he keeps approaching this offseason the way he has and he keeps attacking it the way he has, excited to see what he does with this fourth year.”

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The Jets drafted Becton in the first round of the 2020 NFL draft. He played in 14 games as a rookie, including 13 starts. But the tackle has only appeared in one game the past two years due to injuries.

Becton believes the injuries are in part due to him playing on the right side of the team’s O-line.

“It made no sense to put me at right tackle,” Becton told Newsday. “I hurt my right knee. That’s going to be the knee that I put the most pressure on. I explained it, but no one cared.

“I got forced to play a position I don’t play, and then I was pretty much telling them I wasn’t feeling good the whole time throughout camp, and I was told I shouldn’t be complaining,” Becton said. “Go out there and do it. I was limping throughout the whole practice, and I just took a step and my knee buckled and I got hurt again and had to get reconstructive surgery.”

Becton is still recovering from a season-ending knee injury that he suffered during training camp last year. When Becton returns, he might be asked to play right tackle again. Becton, Duane Brown, Billy Turner, Max Mitchell and others are expected to compete for New York’s two starting tackle spots.

Follow USA TODAY Sports' Tyler Dragon on Twitter @TheTylerDragon.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Jets coach Robert Saleh addresses tackle Mekhi Becton's comments