AP

Last week, Jets wide receiver Brandon Marshall said that quarterback Geno Smith “did nothing wrong” before getting punched by IK Enemkpali in the team’s locker room earlier this month but passed on further opportunities to explain why he felt that way.

He passed on another chance during a Monday appearance on The Rich Eisen Show, but gave an explanation for evading the question.

“Well, first of all, I will say this: No one deserves to ever get hit,” Marshall said. “But if I continue to talk about it, my teammates are going to make me run laps. We made a covenant in the locker room that if we continue to talk about anything that can potentially distract the team, guys have got to run laps. So I will talk about it if you want me to run three miles after practice, after I’ve already ran like three to five miles.”

Marshall may have been kidding about the punishment for talking about Smith’s jaw or other distracting topics, but coach Todd Bowles made it clear last week that the team’s “done talking about it.” Marshall did say that he wasn’t worried about the incident affecting the Jets, calling them a “resilient bunch” and saying that professional athletes have to “absorb” these blows because they happen “so often.”

Resilient is only part of what the Jets will need to be to thrive with or without Smith. Talent and execution are big factors as well and the Jets traded for Marshall this offseason so that he can provide them with both.