Pennington to be evaluated during the week

Sep 10, 2007, 20:01 GMT

Hempstead, NY - New York Jets head coach Eric Mangini confirmed Monday that quarterback Chad Pennington suffered an ankle injury during Sunday's season-opener against the New England Patriots, but did not reveal the severity of the problem or if it will keep the oft-injured signal- caller sidelined.

'It is the ankle,' Mangini stated. 'We'll review it through the course of the week and see where he is, like we do with every injury situation.'

Prodded later Mangini added, 'As soon as he's ready to go, he'll be ready to go.'

Pennington was hurt in the third quarter of Sunday's 38-14 setback. He had his right leg twisted awkwardly beneath him while being tackled by New England's Jarvis Green. He was able to hop on his left leg to the sideline under his own power and, after Kellen Clemens ran one play, returned for the next series.

With New England ahead 28-7, Pennington directed a touchdown drive that made it a 14-point game, capping the series with a one-yard TD strike to Laveranues Coles. The Patriots scored on their next possession to put the game out of reach and Clemens took over for good with 6:51 remaining in the contest.

Pennington threw for 167 yards and two scores on 16-of-21 passing. He was not intercepted.

Clemens, who was cheered by the fans upon his initial entrance as Pennington hopped off the field, finished 5-of-10 for 35 yards.

'It was a tough spot to come in where he came in, with the score being what it is,' Mangini said of Clemens' play in the fourth quarter. 'That's when the defense has its ears pinned back, the running game isn't very much of a threat anymore. It's really a one-dimensional game, which makes it more difficult.

'There were a few plays that he executed pretty well and there are some we need to work on. That's not unique to Kellen, that's all of us across the board. We've all got things that we need to address and get better at.'

The Jets will visit Baltimore this coming Sunday.

© 2007 The Sports Network