Report: Jaguars QB Gardner Minshew Expected to Miss Week 9 Vs. Texans

Ian Rapoport of NFL Network is reporting that Jaguars QB Gardner Minshew is expected to miss his first game with injury in Week 9 vs. Houston.

The Jacksonville Jaguars may have to turn to quarterback depth to help them find a win in the first game after their bye week, according to reports. 

NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported on Sunday that starting quarterback Gardner Minshew is "expected to be inactive" against the Houston Texans in Week 9, meaning either eighth-year journeyman Mike Glennon or Jake Luton would have to start at quarterback in this scenario. 

Both the Texans and Jaguars are 1-6, but Houston won the first meeting between the two teams in Week 5.

Sources: #Jaguars QB Gardner Minshew is expected to be inactive for next week’s game vs the #Texans. Mike Glennon and rookie Jake Luton were told to be ready to compete in practice. One will start, the other will back up against Houston.

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) November 1, 2020

This comes just days after ESPN's Adam Schefter reported that Minshew has multiple fractures and a strained ligament in the thumb on his throwing hand. Minshew reportedly had felt discomfort in his thumb since Jacksonville's Week 5 loss to the Houston Texans, Schefter said.

I personally haven't seen much of a difference from Minshew since the Texans game, but..

Minshew Weeks 1-4:
7.7 Y/A
101.2 passer rating
0.161 EPA/play
7.7 CPOE

Weeks 5-7:
6.0 Y/A
86.0 passer rating
-0.004 EPA/play
-2.8 CPOE

— Gus Logue (@gus_logue) October 29, 2020

If Minshew doesn't start in Week 9, it would be the third straight year in which the Jaguars have started two different quarterbacks during the regular season. Blake Bortles started 12 games while Cody Kessler started the other four in 2018. In 2019, Nick Foles started four games while Minshew started 12.

Through seven games Minshew has completed 65.9% of his passes for 1,855 yards (6.9 yards per attempt) with 13 touchdowns and five interceptions. The second-year passer has started each game this season and has yet to be inactive for a game in his NFL career since the Jaguars drafted him in the sixth round last season.

Glennon has 22 starts in his career and has played with Oakland (2019), Arizona (2018) and Chicago (2017) after beginning his career in Tampa Bay (2013-16), where he was originally drafted by the Buccaneers in the third round (73rd overall) of the 2013 NFL Draft. He has completed 488-of-801 passes (60.9 completion %) for 5,163 yards and 36 touchdowns with 20 interceptions.

Glennon, who is 6-16 as a starter, has a career quarterback rating of 84.3 and has averaged just 6.5 yards per attempt in his career. If using ESPN's QBR metric, Glennon has finished with a QBR of below 54 in every season in which he started more than two games.

Selected in the sixth round with the No. 189 overall pick, Luton became the third quarterback in a row Jacksonville had selected in the sixth round, following Minshew and Tanner Lee. Luton threw 28 touchdowns and three interceptions as a senior at Oregon State last season while also completing 62% of his passes. 

"Jake has been very impressive since the minute he walked into the building with his knowledge of the offense, his ability to learn, his ability to throw the ball, down the field, short passes with touch," offensive coordinator Jay Gruden said during training camp in August.

"I think that’s been the biggest pleasant surprise, I would say is his ability to come in here and learn. He plays with great poise and confidence for a young player. We put him in the number one huddle a couple times, and he has shown no sign of being intimidated. He fits right in there, like I said, he’s got great accuracy, he’s got great arm strength, so we’ve been very impressed with him."