Jaguars vs. Steelers: Zay Jones (Knee) Misses Thursday's Practice
The Jacksonville Jaguars were without a key member of their offense for the second day in a row this week.
Wide receiver Zay Jones (knee) did not practice, while cornerback Gregory Junior (hamstring) and defensive lineman DaVon Hamilton (back) were all full. Jones has missed four games with a knee injury and didn't play the entire game in Week 5 as a result of the injury, but is still amongst the Jaguars' leading red-zone targets.
“I think Zay just has such a versatility to his game that we mix and match it with multiple people. To get the speed element that Zay has, Ag [Jamal Agnew] plays a role in that or we move Christian [Kirk] and Calvin [Ridley] around to do that. To get the physical blocking aspect, Tim [Jones], Elijah [Cooks], maybe a little bit more 12 personnel to do some of the things that Zay can do," Jaguars offensive coordinator Press Taylor said on Thursday. "Zay is so versatile for us, he has the vertical threat with the speed, he’s got length that we don’t necessarily have in the receiver room. The combination of length, speed and blocking ability without him, we can piece it together with a couple of other people. Then, he’s got experience. Some of those other guys in the backend don’t necessarily have. As the game changes and as the picture changes within a down, you know what Zay is going to do because Zay has seen it a million times.
"Zay and Trevor [Lawrence] have that chemistry and that communication that they go through where you’re piecing people to do a job that one person did. Again, Zay is a huge part of our offense, so certainly it’s somebody we miss. I think we have done a decent job of intermixing people into the game and finding different ways and different roles to use those people.”
Despite Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson saying earlier in the week that Jones was on track to practice in some capacity this week, it is seeming more and more likely that the veteran receiver will remain sidelined until after the Jaguars' Week 9 bye.
“Yeah, anytime we’re losing starters or great players, you’re certainly having to piece things together to play a little differently as you do it," Taylor said. "We’re excited when Zay does get back of what he can bring to our offense.”
Cornerback Tyson Campbell (hamstring), safety Andre Cisco (hamstring), quarterback Trevor Lawrence (knee), offensive tackle Walker Little (knee), and offensive guard Brandon Scherff (ankle) were all limited.
