JACKSONVILLE – Dede Westbrook has a good chance to play Sunday.
Westbrook, a third-year wide receiver who played through a shoulder issue to lead the Jaguars in receiving a week ago, could play with same issue this week.
That's according to Head Coach Doug Marrone, who early Friday afternoon said he believes Westbrook will play against the New York Jets Sunday despite being listed as questionable on the team's final injury/game status report of the week.
Westbrook did not practice this week after catching six passes for 103 yards in a victory over Cincinnati last Sunday.
"I feel good," Marrone said of Westbrook's status as the Jaguars (3-4) prepared to play the Jets (1-5) at TIAA Bank Field Sunday at 1 p.m. "I just think if you don't practice all week it's better to put him as questionable, but I think he will play."
Westbrook was the only Jaguars player listed as questionable entering the weekend, with the Jaguars on Friday ruling out three linebackers: weak-side backers Najee Goode (toe) and Quincy Williams (hamstring) and strong-side backer Leon Jacobs (hamstring).
Marrone earlier in the week said Goode, Williams and Jacobs all were doubtful to play Sunday.
Marrone on Friday said Austin Calitro or Malcolm Smith likely will start at weak-side linebacker Sunday, with Joe Giles-Harris a possibility at strong-side backer. The Jaguars signed Calitro on September 3, and signed Smith Tuesday. They signed Giles-Harris off their practice squad Tuesday.
Calitro and Smith both have experience in the Jaguars' style of defense, having played with the Seattle Seahawks. Smith was the Super Bowl Most Valuable Player for Seattle following the 2013 season.
"We're still working through that," Marrone said of the weak-side position. "It's either going to be Austin or Malcolm. We just want to make sure we feel comfortable that everyone knows what they're doing. We may split it. We split the reps today."
The Jaguars on Friday also placed starting defensive tackle Marcell Dareus on injured reserve with a core-muscle injury; he is eligible to return from injured reserve Week 17. The team signed defensive tackle Akeem Spence Friday.
Second-year defensive tackle Taven Bryan is expected to start for Dareus Sunday.
"I watched him play last week; he played 53 plays [for the Miami Dolphins] against Philly (the Philadelphia Eagles)," Marrone said of Spence. "I have a little bit of a background with him. I recruited him when I was [the head coach] at Syracuse. We'll see if we're going to be able to use him or not."
The Jaguars as scheduled worked extensively on red-zone offense Friday, with that being the normal day of practice to emphasize the area. The team is last in the NFL scoring touchdowns in the red zone at 33.3 percent, scoring just one touchdown on six possessions inside the 20 Sunday against Cincinnati.
"It always looks good in practice; it's in the games when you've got to be able to perform," Marrone said. "Sometimes you don't know what you're going to get. You have to do a good job scripting it and make sure we can execute down there and execute well. I don't want to get too ahead of ourselves. First, you've got to be able to get down there."
