The Jaguars have lost tight ends George Wrighster and Greg Estandia for the season to injuries sustained in Sunday’s 36-14 win over the Buffalo Bills.
“It appears Wrighster is going to need surgery to repair a torn ACL and Estandia is going to need surgery to repair his injured shoulder,” coach Jack Del Rio said at his Monday press conference.
Wrighster’s injury did not result from contact. His knee appeared to buckle as he was stepping out of bounds following a completion in the second half of Sunday’s game. Estandia injured his shoulder when he fell on his shoulder attempting to make a catch in the second quarter. The play was reviewed and the ruling reversed to no catch.
Isaac Smolko remains on the team’s practice squad and the Jaguars were expected to re-sign tight end Rich Angulo, who had spent training camp with the Jaguars before being released.
“We have him here because we like him,” Del Rio said of Smolko, who was originally signed by the Steelers as an undrafted player out of Penn State in 2006.
“We’ll go back and do the best we can to assess how we can plug in and move on. Whether we do that out of different personnel groupings or formations … I feel confident our staff will work through it,” Del Rio added.
“This is not devastating,” Assistant Head Coach and tight ends coach Mike Tice said. “We’re fortunate to have two guys available we went through training camp with. We’ll increase (Smolko’s) role a little and bring Rich up to speed.”
The injuries clearly made it difficult for Del Rio to fully enjoy his team’s win, even though tape of the game revealed what Del Rio termed “another solid effort.
“Our guys really flew around and limited some very dangerous return men,” Del Rio said of his special teams coverage units.
Montell Owens got a game ball for his kick coverage, while wide receiver Ernest Wilford got the game ball on offense and middle linebacker Daryl Smith took honors on defense.
Cornerback Rashean Mathis was able to rest his groin strain and Del Rio said it’s likely Mathis will be able to play in Indianapolis this Sunday.
“We were able to take away the most dangerous player,” Del Rio said of wide receiver Lee Evans, who didn’t register a catch until late in the game. Aaron Glenn replaced Mathis at corner.
“I thought it was best for our football team that he be as healthy as possible going forward and not be a nagging injury,” Del Rio said of his decision to rest Mathis. Obviously, Del Rio wanted Mathis fully recovered to play against Peyton Manning and the Colts.
A game behind the Colts in the AFC South standings, Del Rio was asked if the Colts are the target.
“I think us playing our game is the target. I think it’s less about them and more about us,” he said.