Jaguars Get Josh Lambo Back, While Abry Jones Lands on IR
The Jacksonville Jaguars got some good news, and some not so good news, on the injury front on Thursday.
On the bright side, the Jaguars officially activated kicker Josh Lambo from the reserve/injured list to the active roster. Lambo had missed the last four games with a hip injury, leaving the Jaguars with potentially the worst kicking situation in the league.
On the negative side, the Jaguars also announced they had placed veteran nose tackle Abry Jones on injured reserve, meaning he will miss at minimum the next three games. Jones missed Week 6 against the Detroit Lions and the Jaguars' defense suffered a great deal, allowing three rushing scores and 180 rushing yards.
The Jaguars announced several other corresponding moves: tight end Ben Ellefson has been moved from the practice squad to the active roster, while kicker Jon Brown and defensive lineman Josh Mauro were both released. Mauro was released from the team's exempt/commissioner permission list.
Lambo has been on the reserve/injured list since Sept. 23 with his hip injury. He has appeared in just two games this season, converting 3/3 field goals and 6/7 extra points.
Since Lambo has been on the mend, the Jaguars have used four different kickers in four weeks: Brandon Wright (injured/waived), Aldrick Rosas (injured), Stephen Hauschka (released) and Jon Brown, who made 1/2 field goals last week against the Lions. Each kicker missed at least one field goal or extra point.
Jaguars head coach Doug Marrone previously said that the Jaguars were hoping to get Lambo back for Week 7 vs. the Chargers. It now looks like Lambo will make his long-awaited return against his former team.
As for Jones landing on injured reserve, the Jaguars will look to rookie nose tackle DaVon Hamilton to take his place. Hamilton has flashed at times but struggled in a big way vs. the Lions on Sunday, frequently giving up ground at the point of attack. He is currently the 117th ranked defensive tackle by Pro Football Focus, which has 118 defensive tackles graded. This is obviously just one metric but it is worth monitoring how he holds up as the long-term starter.
