The Jacksonville Jaguars will be without three players during their Saturday preseason bout vs. the Detroit Lions.
The Jaguars announced on Thursday that defensive lineman Foley Fatukasi, offensive tackle Josh Wells and safety Antonio Johnson have all been ruled out. Since Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson will not speak to the media until after Saturday's game, it is unlikely for there to be an update on any of the injured players until following the game.
Fatukasi, who signed a three-year, $30 million deal last March, is set to be the Jaguars' starting nose tackle in their base defense. By all accounts from the coaching staff, he has had a strong training camp up to this point after a calf injury pampered his first season with the team.
"Just how he’s attacked this training camp. He came in, great frame of mind, he wanted to get back to the player he was when we evaluated him as a free agent. He’s done that," Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson said earlier in training camp. "He’s been really impressive in these two weeks, he’s coming off the ball pad-levels low, and you’re starting to see those signs of a second-year player in our system, much like Roy [DL Roy Robertson-Harris] where their game now can go to the next level. He’s really embraced that. Again, he understands that, and he knows where he needs to be in and he’s heading in that direction.
"He’s going to be somebody that can hopefully dominate the middle or interior of that offensive line. He’s our guy in the middle, and you want him to be able to push the pocket and generate some power there. Especially if he’s working as a nose and working one-on-one with centers and things like that. That’s the expectation. It goes back to just keeping players in the right spots and making sure they can be the best there. That’s what he’s done, and just taking his game one more notch up. His expectations are high and so are ours and he’s on the right track.”
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