Tag: Daniel Thomas

Jaguars rule DB out vs. Dolphins, make practice squad promotion

Jaguars rule DB out vs. Dolphins, make practice squad promotion

Jacksonville downgraded safety Daniel Thomas from questionable to out of its Week 1 matchup at Miami, prompting the Jaguars to add safety Terrell Edmunds to the active roster via standard elevation from the practice squad.

Thomas had an Achilles issue and appeared on the injury report as limited all week.

While Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson expressed Thomas was coming along as the week progressed, he ultimately was not cleared in time for the Jaguars’ season opener.

“He’s progressed,” Pederson said Friday. “We had a plan for him to work himself back into practice. We’ve got another day today and then see where he’s at. But we’re optimistic and hopeful that he can play.”

The loss of Thomas is notable, as he has taken the field for approximately 60% of Jacksonville’s special teams snaps each of the last four seasons.

Thomas recorded seven tackles on special teams and appeared in 15 games in 2023.

Edmunds, a seven-year NFL veteran, was selected No. 28 overall by Pittsburgh in the 2018 NFL Draft.

After five seasons with the Steelers, Edmunds signed with Philadelphia last year. He appeared in seven games with the Eagles before being traded to the Titans in late October, finishing the 2023 campaign in Tennessee.

The 27-year-old safety signed with Jacksonville in May and was placed on the practice squad in late August.

Across his career, Edmunds has appeared in 94 games, starting 79, accumulating 446 tackles, 28 pass deflections, 17 tackles for loss and six interceptions.

Jaguars vs. Dolphins: Final injury reports

Jaguars vs. Dolphins: Final injury reports

The Jaguars have deemed their one injured player questionable for Sunday’s matchup with the Dolphins, while Miami’s thick Week 1 injury report has been narrowed down to only two game statuses, one player labeled questionable and another ruled out.

Find Jacksonville and Miami’s final Week 1 injury reports and game statuses below.

* indicates an upgraded status from the previous day

Jacksonville Jaguars

  • S Daniel Thomas (Achilles) — limited
  • DE Arik Armstead (veteran rest) — did not participate

Game statuses

  • S Daniel Thomas: QUESTIONABLE

Analysis: Defensive lineman Arik Armstead was given Friday off from practice. No concern should be raised about his availability for Week 1.

Safety Daniel Thomas, who has been recovering from an Achilles injury since Week 2 of the preseason, was limited in practice throughout the week but performed well enough to give Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson hope he will play on Sunday.

“He’s progressed,” Pederson said Friday. “We had a plan for him to work himself back into practice. We’ve got another day today and then see where he’s at. But we’re optimistic and hopeful that he can play.”

Jacksonville has five players on its injured reserve with two, running back Keilan Robinson and safety Andrew Wingard, designated to return this season.

Miami Dolphins

Four players given a veteran rest day without an injury designation Wednesday have been removed from this list. 

  • S Jevon Holland (ankle) — full
  • LB Anthony Walker (knee/veteran rest) — full
  • S Jordan Poyer (thumb/veteran rest) — full
  • DT Benito Jones (knee) — full*
  • C Aaron Brewer (hand) — full*
  • LB Quinton Bell (thumb) — full
  • CB Jalen Ramsey (hamstring) — limited*
  • LB Jaelan Phillips (Achilles/veteran rest) — full
  • WR Malik Washington (quadricep) — did not participate

Game statuses

  • CB Jalen Ramsey: QUESTIONABLE
  • WR Malik Washington: OUT

Analysis: Cornerback Jalen Ramsey’s status represented the biggest question mark on Miami’s injury report this week as he did not practice Wednesday or Thursday.

But upon his three-year contract extension with Miami being reported on Friday, Ramsey returned to work in a limited capacity and is now trending upward fewer than 48 hours before kickoff.

The Dolphins’ injury report does not include four players on Miami’s reserve/physically unable to perform list: Wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr., offensive lineman Isaiah Wynn, edge rusher Bradley Chubb and linebacker Cameron Goode.

This pairs with eight players currently on Miami’s injured reserve.

Jaguars monitoring one player’s injury status entering Week 1

Jaguars monitoring one player’s injury status entering Week 1

The Jaguars are “pretty healthy at this stage,” per head coach Doug Pederson, with only safety Daniel Thomas under the injury microscope ahead of Jacksonville’s Week 1 matchup at Miami on Sunday.

Thomas suffered a foot injury during the preseason which ruled him out of Jacksonville exhibition matchups with Tampa Bay and Atlanta in August.

A fifth-round pick by Jacksonville in 2020, Thomas has appeared in 56 games and started four for the Jaguars over the last four seasons, recording 61 tackles, one interception and two defended passes and taking the field for at least 57% of the club’s special teams snaps yearly.

Thomas was one of four members of Jacksonville’s 53-player roster who did not play against the Falcons in the preseason finale, along with starters, wide receiver Christian Kirk (calf), defensive lineman Arik Armstead (knee) and linebacker Foyesade Oluokun (undisclosed).

In addition to Thomas’ injury, Jacksonville is currently without Andrew Wingard at safety as he enters the season on the injured reserve. Wingard, who continues to nurse a preseason knee injury, will be eligible for activation after Week 4.

Devin Duvernay was a wise investment for Jaguars with new kickoff rule

Devin Duvernay stands to get a ton of opportunities to make big plays for the Jaguars thanks to the NFL’s new kickoff rules.

Just a couple weeks ago, the Jacksonville Jaguars wasted no time signing former Baltimore Ravens return specialist Devin Duvernay to a two-year, $8.5 million contract. It wasn’t exactly a costly addition, but it already looks like a wise and prescient investment.

On Tuesday, the NFL passed a new kickoff rule with two key goals: less injuries and more returns. Here’s everything you need to know:

  • The kicking team will kick off from its own 35-yard line.
  • 10 members of the kicking team will line up on the receiving team’s 40-yard line (25 yards in front of their kicker).
  • A minimum of nine members of the receiving team will line up between their own 30- and 35-yard lines (five-to-10 yards in front of the 10 members of the kicking team).
  • The receiving team can have zero, one or two players inside their own 30-yard line to receive the kickoff.
  • The play begins when the ball is either caught, hits the ground in the landing zone (inside the 20-yard line before the goal line) or is returned from the end zone. That’s when players can begin moving.
  • Any kick that hits the landing zone must be returned.
  • Any kick that bounces from the landing zone into the end zone must be returned or kneeled for a touchback (with possession going out to the 20-yard line).
  • If a kick doesn’t reach the landing zone, the receiving team gets possession at its 40-yard line.
  • If the ball enters the end zone in the air, the receiving team can return it or kneel it for possession at its 30-yard line.
  • If the ball is kicked out of bounds, the receiving team gets possession at its 40-yard line.
  • There are no fair catches.
  • Onside kicks are only permitted in the fourth quarter and must be declared to officials.

All of that translates to a play that looks a little something like this:

There’s not much incentive for kicking teams to boot it into the end zone and there’s every reason to expect Duvernay to get a ton of opportunities to make plays.

In Baltimore, Duvernay twice earned Pro Bowl honors and returned two kickoffs for touchdowns. For the relatively low cost of $4.25 million per season, the Jaguars added arguably the best player in the NFL at a position that suddenly looks significantly more valuable.

Jacksonville’s moves to bring back special teamers Daniel Thomas and Caleb Johnson also aged well, as it’ll be important to have gunners capable of getting down the field and bottling up opposing returners.

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Jaguars reportedly re-sign special teams ace Daniel Thomas

The Jaguars are keeping core special teamer Daniel Thomas with a new contract just before he was set to become a free agent.

The Jacksonville Jaguars are re-signing safety and special teams ace Daniel Thomas, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network.

According to Jordan Schultz of Bleacher Report, it’s a two-year, $4 million deal for Thomas that could be worth as much as $6 million.

Thomas, 25, was a fifth-round pick in 2020 and played out the final year of his rookie contract in 2023. While he’s seen his defensive snaps dwindle during his time with the Jaguars, Thomas has emerged as a leader and a star on the special teams unit.

During the 2023 season, he even earned a bit of national spotlight after Sunday Night Football cameras showed him beat a double team to make an open-field tackle on a punt.

In four seasons with the Jaguars, Thomas has 61 total tackles and an interception that he recorded during his rookie season. While he played 365 defensive snaps in his first two seasons, Thomas saw the field for just 14 defensive snaps last year.

His year ended with a broken forearm suffered in the Jaguars’ Week 16 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

The Jaguars have made special teams an emphasis during Doug Pederson’s time as head coach and they’re keeping their stellar unit in tact by retaining Thomas.

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Studs and duds in Jaguars’ 23-7 loss vs. Ravens

Which Jaguars players stood out most to you Sunday night?

The Jacksonville Jaguars fell to 8-6 on Sunday night when the Baltimore Ravens handed them a third consecutive loss.

It was an all too familiar formula that doomed the Jaguars in the 23-7 loss. Despite finding 333 yards of offense, Jacksonville’s only points came on one 65-yard touchdown.

The Jaguars drove inside the Ravens’ 40-yard line five times and the red zone three times, but somehow finished with zero points to show for it. Quarterback Trevor Lawrence fumbled away one of those possessions, made a crucial error that ran out the clock on another, and turned the ball over on downs late in the fourth quarter. The other two were missed field goals.

Jacksonville had its opportunities and simply didn’t come nearly close enough to capitalizing on them. Here are the players who struggled most Sunday as well as those who stood out in the losing effort:

4 Jaguars questionable, Zay Jones ruled out vs. 49ers

The Jaguars will officially be without Zay Jones and they listed four players as questionable for Sunday against the 49ers.

Not long after Jacksonville Jaguars coach Doug Pederson said that Zay Jones was a “long shot” to play Sunday against the San Francisco 49ers, the wide receiver’s absence was made official in the final injury report.

Jones is the only player who was ruled out by the Jaguars with another four listed as questionable.

“Tyson [Campbell] is doing well, he had a good week of practice, him and [Andre] Cisco are really good, Walker [Little] is really good, so they should be fine,” Pederson said during his Friday press conference.

Daniel Thomas is primarily a special teamer and the newly acquired Ezra Cleveland is expected to be a backup, so it wouldn’t be devastating if the Jaguars were without either or both of those players.

The bigger question mark Sunday is the availability of San Francisco 49ers offensive tackle Trent Williams and defensive tackle Javon Hargrave who were both listed as questionable Friday.

Williams missed the 49ers’ last two games due to his ankle injury and only returned to practice Thursday. Hargrave wasn’t on the report at all Wednesday, but popped up Thursday with a knee issue.

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5 Jaguars players limited, none absent in Thursday practice

On Thursday, the Jaguars had their entire active roster at practice for the first time this season.

The Jacksonville Jaguars had their entire active roster on the practice field Thursday for the first time this season.

While the team’s injury report didn’t have any “did not participate” designations for the first time in 2023, there were still five Jaguars players who were limited. That included wide receiver Zay Jones, who continues to work his way back from a knee injury that has sidelined him since Week 5.

Cornerback Tyson Campbell, safety Andre Cisco, offensive lineman Ezra Cleveland, and special teamer Daniel Thomas were the other four players limited Thursday.

The only change on the report from Wednesday to Thursday was the return of Yasir Abdullah, who was absent earlier in the week due to an illness.

On Wednesday, Zay Jones told reporters that he was making progress in his recovery. Still, it would be a surprise if he was available to play Sunday against the San Francisco 49ers.

For the 49ers, all eyes are on offensive tackle Trent Williams, who missed practice Wednesday due to the same ankle injury that kept him out for two games before the team’s Week 9 bye. On Thursday, he returned to the practice field, but was limited.

The addition of defensive tackle Javon Hargrave with a knee injury is also notable.

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Jaguars 2023 roster review: S Daniel Thomas

Former Auburn safety Daniel Thomas has settled into a role as a reliable special teamer for the Jaguars.

The brunt of the offseason is in the books and training camp is still off on the horizon. Join us in the NFL’s dead zone with a player-by-player review of the Jaguars roster ahead of the 2023 season.

The NFL career of Daniel Thomas has mirrored the one of his fellow Jacksonville Jaguars gunner, Chris Claybrooks.

Both are defensive backs picked late in the 2020 NFL draft who have seen their snaps on defense dwindled through the first three seasons of their career. But both have established themselves as elite special teamers.

Thomas was on the field for just 32 defensive snaps during the 2022 season, but 237 snaps on special teams.

Contract (2023): $1.01 million base salary, $79,279 prorated signing bonus, $1,089,279 cap hit.

Acquired: Jaguars drafted Thomas in the fifth round with the No. 157 overall selection in the 2020 NFL draft.

PFF grades: 

  • 56.6 (2022)
  • 51.9 (2021)
  • 90.0 (2020)

Statistics:

  • Eight tackles (2022)
  • 27 tackles (2021)
  • One interception, 18 tackles (2020)

Highlight:

Quote: “You can make an argument that the gunners on the punt team are the best tandem going in the NFL. Claybrooks, one of the fastest gunners in the NFL, and Daniel Thomas is proven.” – Houston Texans special teams coordinator Frank Ross

Calvin Ridley (No. 0) Travis Etienne Jr. (No. 1) Rayshawn Jenkins (No. 2) C.J. Beathard (No. 3) Tank Bigsby (No. 4) Andre Cisco (No. 5)
Chris Claybrooks (No. 6) Zay Jones (No. 7) Logan Cooke (No. 9) Parker Washington (No. 11) James McCourt (No. 12) Christian Kirk (No. 13)
Kendric Pryor (No. 14) Tim Jones (No. 15) Trevor Lawrence (No. 16) Evan Engram (No. 17) Nathan Rourke (No. 18) Sammis Reyes (No. 19)
Daniel Thomas (No. 20) Latavious Brini (No. 21) JaMycal Hasty (No. 22) Foyesade Oluokun (No. 23) Snoop Conner (No. 24) D’Ernest Johnson (No. 25)
Antonio Johnson (No. 26) Divaad Wilson (No. 27) Tevaughn Campbell (No. 29) Montaric Brown (No. 30) Darious Williams (No. 31) Tyson Campbell (No. 32)
Devin Lloyd (No. 33) Gregory Junior (No. 34) Ayo Oyelola (No. 35) Christian Braswell (No. 36) Tre Herndon (No. 37) Qadree Ollison (No. 38)
Jamal Agnew (No. 39) Erick Hallett (No. 40) Josh Allen (No. 41) Andrew Wingard (No. 42) Kaleb Hayes (No. 43) Derek Parish (No. 43)
Travon Walker (No. 44) K’Lavon Chaisson (No. 45) Ross Matiscik (No. 46) De’Shaan Dixon (No. 47) Chad Muma (No. 48) Leonard Taylor (No. 49)
Shaquille Quarterman (No. 50) Ventrell Miller (No. 51) DaVon Hamilton (No. 52) Willie Taylor III (No. 53) DJ Coleman (No. 54) Dequan Jackson (No. 55)
Yasir Abdullah (No. 56) Caleb Johnson (No. 57) Raymond Vohasek (No. 59) Darryl Williams (No. 60) Samuel Jackson (No. 62) Coy Cronk (No. 64)
Chandler Brewer (No. 67) Brandon Scherff (No. 68) Tyler Shatley (No. 69) Cole Van Lanen (No. 70) Walker Little (No. 72) Blake Hance (No. 73)
Cam Robinson (No. 74) Cooper Hodges (No. 75) Anton Harrison (No. 76) Josh Wells (No. 77) Ben Bartch (No. 78) Luke Fortner (No. 79)
Kevin Austin Jr. (No. 80) Seth Williams (No. 81) Elijah Cooks (No. 84) Brenton Strange (No. 85) Gerrit Prince (No. 86) Jaray Jenkins (No. 87)
Oliver Martin (No. 88) Luke Farrell (No. 89) Henry Mondeaux (No. 90) Jordan Smith (No. 92) Tyler Lacy (No. 93) Folorunso Fatukasi (No. 94)
Roy Robertson-Harris (No. 95) Adam Gotsis (No. 96) Nick Thurman (No. 97) Michael Dogbe (No. 98) Jeremiah Ledbetter (No. 99) Brandon McManus
Jacob Harris

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Jaguars announce inactives for Week 1 tilt vs. Washington

These players will have to wait another week to make their regular season debut for the #Jaguars

The Jacksonville Jaguars will kick off their 2022 season today against the Washington Commanders at 1 p.m. ET at FedEx Field in the rain. Both teams are in search of their first win in their new campaigns and have rebuilt their rosters in the offseason to get off to a fast start this year.

Jacksonville announced their inactives for the Week 1 matchup on Twitter Sunday morning:

Their decision to leave three defensive players inactive heading into the scrum is a testament to the faith they have in their depth on that side of the ball. Linebacker De’Shaan Dixon and rookie cornerback Montaric Brown were quiet stars of the Jaguars’ preseason but will have to wait until next week to see their first action in a game that counts.

With a stable of solid skill position players on offense, their decision to deactivate their newest receiver, Kendrick Pryor, is a sound strategic move. The choice to carry JaMycal Hasty over Snoop Conner as their third running back won’t make much of an impact on the outcome of the game and is likely to give Jacksonville their first glimpse of Hasty in the teal and black.

All of the players on the Jaguars’ list are rookies, with the exception of Daniel Thomas, who is in his third professional season. Dixon and Pryor were undrafted free agents back in April, while Conner and Brown were fifth and seventh-round selections respectively.

None of the players that were set as inactive were slated to be starters, nor were they included on the Jaguars’ injury reports earlier in the week. With these moves, head coach Doug Pederson has effectively revealed the core group of players he thinks will give Jacksonville the best chance to win games in 2022.

Stay tuned to Jaguars Wire as we bring you all the action from the team’s season opener today in Washington.