Laviska Shenault Ruled Out, Sidney Jones Questionable For Steelers Game

Jacksonville has three players listed as questionable and two listed as out for Sunday's game against the Steelers.

The Jacksonville Jaguars have a tough matchup against the undefeated Pittsburgh Steelers this weekend, and it will be made even tougher by the team's game status report for Sunday's clash.

The Jaguars (1-8) will be without two key contributors on offense: wide receiver Laviska Shenault (hamstring) and tight end James O'Shaughnessy (knee). This will be the second consecutive game that Shenault, the No. 42 overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, will miss. 

Shenault has caught 30 passes for 323 yards (both third on the team) and one touchdown in eight games this season. Jacksonville's biggest addition on offense this past offseason, Shenault has also carried the ball 11 times for 54 yards (4.9 yards per carry).

Missing Shenault for the second week in a row is obviously a bad omen for a Jaguars offense that is set to start a sixth-round rookie quarterback against the league's best defense. Shenault gives the Jaguars a versatile element in their offense that no other player provides, even veteran receiver Chris Conley, who is taking his spot in the offense.

"Laviska does some special things. You put him in the backfield, you can do some wildcat things, and you don’t do that with anybody else," Jaguars offensive coordinator Jay Gruden said last week. 

"He’s getting all those reps, the reverses and all that stuff. Some other guys we can get out in space and do some things, but Laviska’s a different cat and calls for a different type of play."

O'Shaughnessy has been the team's primary No. 2 tight end this season. He is eighth on the team in targets (21) while catching 16 passes for 156 yards (9.8 yards per reception). With him out for Sunday's game, rookie tights Tyler Davis and Ben Ellefson will likely see an uptick in snaps, though Ellefson should be the favorite to be Tyler Eifert's backup.

"Ben Ellefson, the free agent tight end that we have from North Dakota State. He’s another guy that’s come in and done a nice job as far as the tight end position," Jaguars head coach Doug Marrone said earlier this week. 

Meanwhile, the Jaguars have three players listed as limited: cornerback Sidney Jones (achilies), quarterback Gardner Minshew II (thumb), and wide receiver Collin Johnson (hamstring). All three players have been limited participants in practice throughout this week. 

If Jones does not play on Sunday, that means the Jaguars will be without their top two cornerbacks against the Steelers. First-round rookie cornerback CJ Henderson was placed on injured reserve with a groin injury, leaving the Jaguars limited at the cornerback position if Jones can't play. 

Marrone said Friday that if Jones doesn't play, the team will start third-year cornerback Tre Herndon and seventh-round rookie Chris Claybrooks at outside cornerback while eighth-year veteran D.J. Hayden mans the slot. Hayden has missed the last five games with a hamstring injury but was designated to return from injured reserve earlier this week.

Minshew has been inactive for each of the last two games due to his thumb injury. Rookie quarterback Jake Luton has started in his place, though Minshew did resume throwing in practice this week.