With cutdown day over and done with, the Jets will shift their focus to their practice squad on Sunday.

The practice squad features a few new rules this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. There can be 16 total players on the practice squad, up from 10 in previous years. Six of the players can have as many accrued seasons as possible, while the rest either have no accrued seasons, one-plus accrued seasons or two accrued seasons.

Teams can protect four players on their practice squad from being signed by other teams. As long as teams submit their names the Tuesday before a game, then no other team can sign them.

With that being said, let’s take a look at four players the Jets should protect for their practice squad.

QB David Fales

AP Photo/Adam Hunger

The Jets are going to need another quarterback on the roster for Week 1, so they’ll likely bring David Fales back to their practice squad as long as he clears waivers.

With Joe Flacco out for the first few weeks, the Jets only have one healthy quarterback to backup Sam Darnold. That would be rookie quarterback James Morgan. So the Jets are going to need Fales to be the third or No. 2 quarterback just in case both Sam Darnold and Morgan were to get hurt.

Fales doesn’t have a lot of game experience, but he knows Adam Gase’s playbook. Wherever Gase has gone, Fales has followed. New York can promote Fales to the 53-man roster twice before he is subject to waivers.

WR Lawrence Cager

AP Photo/Seth Wenig

With all the injuries the Jets had at wide receiver this training camp, they’ll need to keep a few on the practice squad. Lawrence Cager makes perfect sense.

Cager shined in training camp this summer, but a knee injury and the lack of preseason games hurt his chances of making the 53-man roster. At 6-foot-5 and 220 pounds, Cager has the size to be an NFL wide receiver.

Cager is also a big fan of Sam Darnold. The two played in a lot of high school all-star games together, so they have a relationship that goes back years. If the Jets can bring Cager back to the practice squad, they’ll have a guy who knows Darnold’s game in case disaster strikes at wide receiver.

CB Javelin Guidry

(AP Photo/Adam Hunger)

The Jets really liked Javelin Guidry because of his speed and they don’t have a ton of depth at cornerback, so he could be a strong practice squad candidate.

Guidry made some plays during training camp, but again no preseason games impacted his chances of making the roster. If injuries start piling up at cornerback, Guidry could very well be promoted to the active roster.

He just has to clear waivers first. Expect him to get some interest.

OT Jared Hilbers

(AP Photo/Adam Hunger)

The Jets only have eight offensive linemen on the 53-man roster at the moment, so they’ll need some depth by and can bring back Jared Hilbers.

With all the injuries the Jets had on the offensive line last season, they need to have more bodies. Joe Douglas has stressed that you never have enough offensive linemen.

Hilbers was one of the better offensive tackles in college football last season, so he makes for a solid backup at tackle.