The Jaguars are placing tight end Niles Paul on injured reserve with a sprained MCL, as Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. The injury is not a season-ender, but he will have to miss at least eight weeks while on IR, per league rules.
The Jaguars have now lost their two best pass-catching tight ends to injury this season. Just one week ago, the club was forced to place Austin Seferian-Jenkins on IR. The silver lining here is that ASJ is also eligible to return, and can suit up one week before Paul.
Paul, 29, had seven catches for 65 yards after taking over for Seferian-Jenkins in Week 5. It was his best performance since September of 2014, when he made some noise as a member of the Redskins.
To take Paul’s place on the roster, the Jags signed free agent tight end Blake Bell. Bell has 22 catches for 290 yards over three seasons with the Niners and Vikings. That’s far from ASJ’s best work, and nowhere near what Paul can do at his best, but beggars can’t be choosers. For the foreseeable future, the Jags will be working with a core of David Grinnage, James O’Shaughnessy, and Bell at tight end.
Wasn’t he a QB in college
Niles Paul? He was a WR at Nebraska Skins turned him into a TE