JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — One Jacksonville Jaguars rookie has seen his season end before it could really start.
The Jaguars officially placed seventh-round rookie linebacker Parker Hughes on injured reserve on Monday morning, meaning his season is now over and he will spend his rookie year on the sidelines.
So, what does the Hughes injury mean for the Jaguars and their rookie linebacker? We break it down below.
This Could Help Hughes For 2027
While it is not ideal for any player to miss their rookie year, this might help Hughes and his development with the Jaguars in the long run. Before the Jaguars have injury, start to stack up at the linebacker position and recent weeks, it looked like Hughes was going to be one player who was going to have to fight for a roster spot, and reps in practice were not exactly bountiful for the Day 3 pick out of Middle Tennessee State.
As a result, there was a real chance he might have been waived at the 53-man roster cut down, and the Jaguars would have had to take the chance of him clearing waivers to keep him on the practice squad. But that is no longer the case. With Hughes now on injured reserve for his rookie season, the Jaguars can essentially give him a redshirt y,ear and stash him. This would mean that he could remain on the roster and then return for next year’s off-season, and then potentially battle for a roster spot then. This isn’t an unusual outcome or situation for a late-round pick, but we have seen it work out in some cases and lead to players sticking around.
Linebacker Room Being Hit Hard By Injuries
The Jaguars are getting hit with plenty of injuries at the linebacker position right now. The Jaguars have not had second-year linebacker Jack Kiser since the first day of training camp after he sustained a knee injury, and he remains week-to-week. Since then, the Jaguars have had to sign multiple linebackers, and the depth chart has had to be shifted around quite a bit behind their top-3 linebacker group of Foyesade Oluokun, Ventrell Miller and Branson Combs.
Now, it is not as if Hughes was the X-Factor of the linebacker room and would give them great depth if he were healthy. But the Jaguars are running low on bodies at the off-ball linebacker position right now, and as a result there are several names getting reps with the unit who were not even on the roster when training camp began during late-July. This is a rough-looking unit right now.
Who This Opened Up a Roster Spot For
With Hughes now out for the season, there is clearly a roster spot that has been opened for one player: veteran linebacker Jahlani Tavai, who signed with the team a few weeks ago after not being on a roster at the start of camp. The former Detroit Lions and New England Patriots linebacker got a lot of praise from head coach Liam Coen on Monday for being a pro’s pro since he arrived in Jacksonville, and he looks like the “winner” from the linebacker situation.
It remains to be seen exactly when Kiser will return to the lineup, which could mean the linebacker room is one more injury or so away from Tavai becoming an incredibly important piece of the depth chart. Nobody would have guessed that a few weeks ago, but it is where injuries have brought the Jaguars now.
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