Jacksonville’s offense suffered a major blow early in Thursday night’s game against Cincinnati, as third-year receiver D.J. Chark was carted off the field with an apparent left leg injury. On the preceding play, right tackle Jawaan Taylor rolled up on the back of Chark’s leg, and according to ESPN’s Michael DiRocco, he wasn’t putting weight on his left leg as he got onto the cart.
Per the Jaguars PR account, Chark is questionable to return to the game against the Bengals with an ankle injury.
INJURY UPDATE: WR DJ Chark Jr. is questionable to return (ankle).
— JaguarsPR (@JaguarsPR) October 1, 2021
While Chark hasn’t been Trevor Lawrence’s top target to start the season (that honor goes to Marvin Jones Jr.), he is Jacksonville’s second-leading receiver with seven catches for 154 yards and two touchdowns through the first three games.
Without him, Tyron Johnson is likely to get more reps on the outside, as well as Tavon Austin, who is making his Jaguars debut tonight. The Jags will hope that Chark’s injury isn’t severe and that he can return to the field sooner rather than later.