Jaguars QB Nick Foles Placed on Injured Reserve

The Jacksonville Jaguars entered the 2019 season full of optimism after signing Super Bowl-winning [...]

By John Newby

The Jacksonville Jaguars entered the 2019 season full of optimism after signing Super Bowl-winning quarterback Nick Foles to a four-year, $88 million contract in the offseason. Unfortunately, the season has quickly taken a very negative detour. Foles has now been placed on Injured Reserve after suffering a broken clavicle against the Kansas City Chiefs.

Early in the first quarter of Sunday's battle with the Chiefs, Foles was hit while throwing a 35-yard touchdown and was driven into the ground. He landed awkwardly on his left shoulder and was taken in for evaluation. The Jaguars fans hoped at the time that it was a minor issue, but Coach Marrone later confirmed that Foles had broken his clavicle.

Following the game, the belief was that he would be out indefinitely, and the team confirmed that Monday by placing Foles on Injured Reserve. He does have the designation of likely to return but will have to sit out for eight games, per league rules. Now, the team will forge ahead with rookie Gardner Minshew, who went 22-25 in replacement of Foles while throwing for 275 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception.

In addition, the Jaguars also completed a trade with the Pittsburgh Steelers to bring backup quarterback Josh Dobbs to town. The former fourth-round pick from 2017 will now serve as Minshew's backup after being exchanged for a 2020 fifth-round pick.

After five years of Blake Bortles, it was time for the franchise to make a change, and Foles provided hope for head coach Doug Marrone and this young roster.

Unfortunately for Foles, this is not the first time that he has suffered this exact injury. Back in 2014, he was the starter for the Philadelphia Eagles and was looking to prove that he was the best option in the building. However, he broke his clavicle during a November battle with the Houston Texans.

At the time, the Eagles explained that Foles would be out indefinitely while recovering from the injury, and he was later placed on Injured Reserve. If this broken clavicle had occurred earlier in the year, the Eagles likely would have kept Foles on the active roster and let him heal, but the timetable of 6-8 weeks meant that he would miss the remainder of the season.

Will 2019 play out differently for Foles as he looks to make an impact with the Jacksonville Jaguars? As he explained to reporters following the game, this injury seemed worse than the 2014 version. He is set to undergo surgery on Monday and will likely end up returning closer to the eight-week mark. Coach Marrone would not go so far as to say that Foles would meet this mark and told reporters that there is no timetable for his quarterback's return.

Losing Foles was a brutal hit for the rising Jaguars, especially considering that the Tennessee Titans shocked the Cleveland Browns with a decisive victory on Sunday afternoon. The Duval County team is in a hole in the standings and will be without the starting quarterback for the foreseeable future.

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