Injury news – Page 2 – Syndication Server

Jaguars rule LB out vs. Lions

The Jacksonville Jaguars made a late addition to their Week 11 injury report and will be without linebacker Yasir Abdullah against the Detroit Lions on Sunday, the club announced on Saturday.

Abdullah will not travel with the Jaguars to Detroit as he nurses a hamstring injury.

Jacksonville’s fifth-round, No. 136 overall pick in the 2023 NFL draft, Abdullah has emerged as a key special teamer and carved out a role in the Jaguars’ linebacker rotation this season after playing minimally as a rookie.

Abdullah has logged 17 total tackles, of which three were recorded on special teams, in nine games this season.

The Jaguars officially ruled quarterback Trevor Lawrence and running back Tank Bigsby out against the Lions on Friday. Jacksonville also deemed running back Keilan Robinson, left guard Ezra Cleveland and defensive lineman Maason Smith questionable for the game.

Jacksonville vs. Detroit will kick off at 1 p.m. ET on Sunday, at Ford Field.

Pederson previews Bigsby, Cleveland’s status for Jaguars vs. Lions

Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson called Friday a “big day” for determining running back Tank Bigsby’s availability for Jacksonville’s Week 11 road matchup with the Detroit Lions.

Bigsby did not practice Wednesday or Thursday while nursing an ankle injury, which he suffered in Week 7 against the New England Patriots and aggravated Sunday against the Minnesota Vikings.

“Tank’s gonna go today,” Pederson said Friday. “We’ll see. Optimistic, you know. But obviously, today will be a big day for him.”

Bigsby has rushed for 519 yards and four touchdowns over 95 attempts this season and added three receptions for 36 yards.

Pederson revealed that Jacksonville’s starting left guard, Ezra Cleveland, will likely play against Detroit after missing the Jaguars’ last two games with an ankle injury suffered in Week 8 against the Green Bay Packers.

“Ezra should be good to go,” Pederson said.

Jacksonville vs. Detroit will kick off at 1 p.m. ET on Sunday, at Ford Field.

Jaguars QB Trevor Lawrence ruled out vs. Lions

The Jaguars will be without Trevor Lawrence again in Week 11, as Jacksonville head coach Doug Pederson ruled the starting quarterback out against the Detroit Lions before practice on Wednesday.

Lawrence also missed Jacksonville’s Week 10 loss to the Minnesota Vikings, after a week of limited practice participation due to a left shoulder injury suffered against the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 9.

“Trevor will be out, we decided this week,” Pederson told reporters Wednesday. “He’s getting close, but to make sure that — again, you guys know how I am with injuries, we don’t want to put a player out there that’s not 100%. So, we’re going to rest him one more week.”

Lawrence is reportedly nursing a “significant” AC joint sprain in his non-throwing shoulder.

Lawrence has completed 168-of-274 (61.3%) passes for 2,004 yards with 11 touchdowns and six interceptions in nine starts this season. He has also rushed for three touchdowns.

Pederson acknowledged the benefit of Jacksonville’s bye week following the Jaguars’ matchup with the Lions, effectively giving Lawrence a three-week recovery window given his light workload in practice last week.

That said, Pederson did not guarantee Lawrence would be ready to go come the Jaguars’ Week 13 home bout with the Houston Texans.

“It’s still a question mark. But, you know, I’m optimistic,” Pederson said.

Jacksonville native Mac Jones will start against the Lions, in Lawrence’s place for the second consecutive week. The Jaguars’ backup quarterback completed 14-of-22 passes for 111 yards with two interceptions and a fumble against the Vikings.

Pederson updates Jaguars QB Trevor Lawrence, OL Ezra Cleveland

The Jaguars will monitor the statuses of a pair of injured starters, quarterback Trevor Lawrence and left guard Ezra Cleveland, throughout Week 11 as Jacksonville prepares to face the Detroit Lions on Sunday.

Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson considered it “hard to tell” if Lawrence, who missed Jacksonville’s Week 10 loss to the Minnesota Vikings with a reportedly “significant” AC joint sprain in his left shoulder, will be able to play against the Lions.

“We’ve still got a couple of days. I don’t have any definite answers right now,” Pederson said about Lawrence.

Pederson added that Lawrence has not spoken with the Jaguars about undergoing surgery on his injury, which was called “possible” by NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport on Sunday.

“There’s not been a talk on surgery, so I don’t know where the surgery talk is coming from,” said Pederson. “Nothing like that.”

Lawrence has completed 168-of-274 (61.3%) passes for 2,004 yards with 11 touchdowns and six interceptions in nine starts this season. He has also rushed for three touchdowns.

Cleveland hurt his ankle in the Jaguars’ Week 8 loss against the Green Bay Packers and has been sidelined ever since. He missed Jacksonville’s last two games and has not practiced since Oct. 25.

Pederson suggested Cleveland could return to practice on Wednesday in an unclear capacity.

“As of Monday, today, tomorrow — he’s going to get some rest on it again and he should be out there at practice and maybe get a few snaps,” Pederson said. “We’ll see where he’s at.”

Report: Injured Jaguars starting WRs expected to play vs. Vikings

Jaguars injured starting wide receivers Brian Thomas Jr. and Gabe Davis are expected to play Sunday when Jacksonville hosts the Minnesota Vikings, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN reported late Saturday night.

Jacksonville listed Thomas (chest) and Davis (shoulder) as questionable to play in Week 10 on the club’s Friday injury report.

Both players experienced their injuries against the Green Bay Packers in Week 8, although Davis had hurt the same shoulder earlier in the season, per Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson.

Thomas managed to play hurt against the Philadelphia Eagles last Sunday in Week 9; Davis did not.

Thomas, Jacksonville’s No. 23 overall pick in the first round of April’s NFL draft, has caught 35 passes for 595 yards and five touchdowns during his explosive rookie campaign, the latter two stats ranking among the top 10 in the NFL this year.

Davis, who signed a three-year, $39 million free-agent contract with Jacksonville in March, has logged 18 receptions for 217 yards and two touchdowns this season.

Thomas and Davis’ availability is welcome news to the Jaguars as they will reportedly be without starting quarterback Trevor Lawrence (shoulder) against the Vikings on Sunday.

Mac Jones will make his first start since being traded to Jacksonville from New England in Lawrence’s place.

Report: Jaguars starting QB Trevor Lawrence out vs. Vikings

Jaguars starting quarterback Trevor Lawrence has been ruled out of Jacksonville’s Week 10 matchup with the Minnesota Vikings, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reported early Sunday.

Rapoport noted that Lawrence is nursing a “significant” AC joint sprain in his left, non-throwing shoulder, suffered in Jacksonville’s Week 9 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles.

“Surgery is possible for Lawrence, sources say, though the current plan is for rest and rehab,” Rapoport wrote. “While the team has called him day to day, week-to-week is probably a more accurate description. Regardless of whether Lawrence plays moving forward, the injury is expected to limit him for the next several weeks.”

Jacksonville called Lawrence questionable for the game on its Friday injury report after his daily limited practice participation this week.

However, Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson expressed doubt about Lawrence’s status on Friday, although he added he does not currently view Lawrence as a candidate to be placed on the injured reserve.

“He’s been very limited all week. It is trending, obviously, in a way that’s probably to not playing or leaning towards not playing,” Pederson said.

Lawrence, who signed a five-year, $275 million contract extension with Jacksonville this offseason, has completed 168-of-274 (61.3%) passes for 2,004 yards with 11 touchdowns and six interceptions in nine starts this season.

Since being selected No. 1 overall by the Jaguars in the 2021 NFL draft, Lawrence has thrown for 13,774 yards with 69 touchdowns, 45 interceptions and a 63.4% completion rate. He has added 1,077 yards and 14 touchdowns rushing.

Mac Jones will start in place of Lawrence at quarterback on Sunday. The Jaguars acquired the Jacksonville native, who played high school football for The Bolles School, from the New England Patriots via trade in March.

Jones has completed six-of-nine passes for 28 yards in relief of Lawrence this season and 66.1% of his career throws for 8,946 yards with 46 touchdowns and 36 interceptions, adding 327 yards and one touchdown rushing.

“I’ve got a lot of confidence,” Pederson said about Jones on Friday. “He’s somebody that prepares extremely hard, extremely well. He’s a smart kid. You go back to even some of the preseason stuff and what he did then, as far as preparation and all that and how he played. He’s going to be fine.

“He’ll be excited. Home game, home crowd, home fans, his people, so to speak. But [I have] a lot of confidence in him.”

Jaguars activate WR Devin Duvernay from injured reserve

The Jaguars activated wide receiver Devin Duvernay from their injured reserve on Saturday, ending his four-week stint on the list and making him available to play in Week 10 against the Minnesota Vikings in Jacksonville.

Jacksonville signed Duvernay via free agency this offseason and deployed him as the team’s primary kickoff and punt returner to begin the campaign.

However, Duvernay hurt his hamstring in Jacksonville’s Week 5 win over the Indianapolis Colts and was placed on the injured reserve on Oct. 9. His 21-day injured reserve practice window was opened Wednesday.

Duvernay returned five kickoffs for 20 yards per return, seven punts for 11.6 yards per return, caught one pass for a one-yard loss and rushed three times for 10 yards in his first five games with the Jaguars this year.

Over the first four seasons of his NFL career, with Baltimore, Duvernay posted 94 receptions for 898 yards and five touchdowns, 27 rushing attempts for 219 yards and one score, and averaged 24.5 yards per kickoff return with two touchdowns and 12.8 yards per punt return.

Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson suggested Friday that Duvernay could see an uptick in usage offensively given the injuries Jacksonville has suffered at wide receiver, including losing starting slot receiver Christian Kirk for the season after he broke his collarbone in Week 8.

“I think he’ll have a bigger role now that the guys are banged up, right? More than just returner out there,” Pederson said. “So again, Devin is a pro. He prepares, he gets himself ready to go and I would anticipate him playing a little bit more on offense.”

Jaguars activate S Andrew Wingard from injured reserve

The Jaguars activated safety Andrew Wingard from the injured reserve Saturday, allowing him to make his 2024 season debut when Jacksonville faces the Minnesota Vikings at home in Week 10.

Wingard returned to practice in Week 8 after landing on the injured reserve in August. He hurt his knee during training camp in July and missed Jacksonville’s entire preseason.

Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson on Wednesday expressed his expectation that Wingard would return to action this week.

“I expect him to play,” Pederson said. “This obviously is [the] last week of the three-week window, so he’s feeling good. We’ll get him out there today, tomorrow, Friday, and go. But I do. My expectation, and his expectation is to play.”

Wingard signed with Jacksonville as an undrafted free agent out of Wyoming in 2019 and has stuck with the team ever since, primarily in a core special teams role with frequent defensive playing time. He signed a three-year, $9.6 million contract extension with the Jaguars in 2023.

In 78 games including 26 starts, Wingard has logged 250 tackles including eight for loss, two sacks, five interceptions, nine defended passes and three forced fumbles.

Jacksonville vs. Minnesota is scheduled to kick off at 1:00 p.m. ET Sunday at EverBank Stadium.

Doug Pederson: Jaguars OL, DL ‘probably’ out vs. Vikings

Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson said Friday that starting left guard Ezra Cleveland and rookie backup defensive tackle Maason Smith will likely be ruled out of Jacksonville’s Week 10 matchup with the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday.

Cleveland is tracking to miss his second game since hurting his ankle in Jacksonville’s Week 8 loss to the Green Bay Packers. Smith has been inactive for the Jaguars’ last three games, Weeks 8-9 due to an ankle injury and Week 7 as a healthy scratch.

“Ezra and Maason probably [will not play],” Pederson said. “Maason’s still probably a week and Ezra’s probably another week too. When I say Maason, could be ready next week. So those two right now, as far as injury goes.”

Cleveland has started 13 games for the Jaguars since Jacksonville acquired him via trade from Minnesota last season.

Smith, Jacksonville’s second-round pick in this offseason’s NFL draft, has recorded five tackles, one sack and one defended pass in five games this year.

Jacksonville vs. Minnesota will kickoff at 1 p.m. ET Sunday at EverBank Stadium.

Report: Jaguars QB Trevor Lawrence ‘unlikely’ to play vs. Vikings

The Jaguars are “unlikely” to have starting quarterback Trevor Lawrence available for Jacksonville’s Week 10 home matchup with the Minnesota Vikings, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network.

Lawrence injured his left, non-throwing shoulder in the second quarter of Jacksonville’s Week 9, 28-23 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. He began Week 10 as a limited participant in practice on Wednesday.

Rapoport later responded to a rumor that Lawrence’s injury required surgery, saying no such operation was scheduled but that it remains an option as the quarterback nurses his shoulder.

Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson said before practice on Wednesday that he was uncertain about Lawrence’s status for Sunday.

“Can’t answer that. Can’t answer that today,” Pederson stated. “Not sitting here Wednesday, no.”

If Lawrence can not go against the Vikings, it will mark the second missed game of his four-season NFL career. He missed Jacksonville’s Week 17 matchup with Carolina in 2023 after suffering multiple injuries in the weeks leading up, including a concussion and a hurt ankle, shoulder and knee.

Lawrence has completed 168-of-274 (61.3%) of his passes for 2,004 yards with 11 touchdowns and six interceptions this season. He has rushed 25 times for 113 yards and three touchdowns.

Mac Jones, who Jacksonville traded for from New England this offseason, would start against Minnesota if Lawrence is unable to play.

Jones has completed six-of-nine passes for 28 yards in two appearances this season.