The Jaguars are banged up ahead of their Week 9 matchup with the Philadelphia Eagles. They are navigating injuries to six starters suffered in Jacksonville’s Sunday loss to the Green Bay Packers, to pair with starting running back Travis Etienne Jr. (hamstring) missing the team’s last two games.
Cornerback Ronald Darby (hip), wide receivers Brian Thomas Jr. (chest) and Gabe Davis (shoulder), and offensive guards Brandon Scherff (knee) and Ezra Cleveland (ankle) evaded long-term injury in Week 8.
However, most of the group enters Week 9 “day-to-day,” per Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson.
“Darby’s good, Darby will be out there. [Thomas], we’ve just got to wait and see. He’s going to be day-to-day. Gabe’s going to be day-to-day. [Scherff is] day-to-day. Ezra, day-to-day, ankle. We’ll see how he is at the end of the week,” Pederson said.
The sixth starter to go down against the Packers, wide receiver Christian Kirk, suffered a season-ending broken collarbone, which was reported late Sunday.
Pederson suggested Etienne, who the head coach considered a game-time decision for each of Jacksonville’s last two games, is inching closer to returning to play this week.
“Yeah, should get him back,” Pederson said. “Looking forward to getting him out there and getting some reps, see how he feels.”
As Jacksonville kicks off its week of practice before facing Philadelphia, Pederson said the Jaguars are leaning on the development of their roster depth this past offseason as they manage their battered lineup.
“Next man up. I mean honestly, it’s easy as that,” Pederson said. “You know, the games are still going to come and the league is still going to continue on, and we’re going to continue on.
“We’ve got to coach. That’s why we develop guys in the offseason, you know, for opportunities like this. So, whether it’s a young player, a rookie, a vet or a practice squad elevation, we’re going to continue to coach everybody and get them prepared for each week.”