The Jacksonville Jaguars have had consecutive joint practices for several years now but that streak will end this year. The league sent a memo to the whole league Tuesday stating that joint practices will be prohibited this year due to the complications caused by the coronavirus.
And the NFL just sent a memo to teams informing them that they also will not be allowed to hold joint practices with other teams this summer either, per source. It had developed into a popular practice in recent years.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) June 2, 2020
The Jags had plans to travel to their in-state rivals, the Tampa Bay Bucs, for joint practice sessions before their Week 2 preseason matchup. It would’ve marked their second time linking up under Doug Marrone as they also had joint practices together in 2017.
The Jags used all 12 of their draft selections this April and added 18 undrafted players, so they unquestionably will be one of the youngest teams in football — if not the youngest. Eliminating their joint practice session with the Bucs certainly can’t help their situation as it provided a chance to match up with a postseason caliber team.
Teams are already missing time together and have had to resort to virtual meetings to mostly communicate. When adding in the fact that teams reportedly won’t get back to action until training camp, it appears the Jags’ young players are going to start their careers with a crash course.