Not long after beginning his eighth season as a Jaguars starter, Brandon Linder is heading back to injured reserve. The Jags are placing their starting center on IR due to multiple injuries.
Linder is expected to miss at least four games due to an MCL sprain and a high ankle sprain, Charean Williams of Pro Football Talk notes. The veteran blocker left Jacksonville’s Week 5 game in the fourth quarter, being carted off the field during the team’s loss to the Titans.
This continues a trend for Linder, who missed seven games in both the 2018 and ’20 seasons. Although Linder is one of the NFL’s better centers, he has missed 33 games over the course of his Jaguars run. Ankle and knee issues have dogged Linder in the past, with an ankle malady ending his 2020 season and a knee issue shutting him down in 2018.
Although the Jags changed regimes this offseason, they kept all five of their primary offensive line starters from their 1-15 2020 campaign. Linder graded as Pro Football Focus’ No. 3 overall center last season; this year, he slots 24th through four-plus games. The 29-year-old snapper had been on the field for all the Jags’ offensive plays until the cart-off sequence Sunday. Linder’s four-year, $51MM deal runs through 2022.
The Jags signed Rashaad Coward off the Steelers’ practice squad to fill Linder’s roster spot. Coward logged 15 starts with the Bears from 2017-20.