Josh Oliver expected to play Sunday

The Jacksonville Jaguars could get a boost at the injury hit tight end position on Sunday against the Cincinnati Bengals with the debut of rookie Josh Oliver. Oliver was picked in the third round of the 2019 NFL Draft and was a star during OTAs and training camp, but a hamstring injury in training camp has sidelined him until this week.

Oliver practiced in full on Thursday and the expectation is that he will play against the Bengals to make his debut.

“You just have trust in the player you saw in college and the skillset. There’s some unknown there, he hasn’t practiced a lot, and that’s what it is. And you can sugarcoat it and do all of this stuff, but it is what it is,” Jaguars offensive coordinator John DeFilippo said on Thursday when asked about recalling what Oliver did well back during OTAs and incorporating it into the game plan. “He has not practiced and has not played. But that being said, if I was going to bet on a young man to go in there and perform well it would be Josh [Oliver]. So, I’m not scared to put him in there at all, and I know our coaching staff is not scared to put him in there at all on Sunday if that’s the case.”

The losses of James O’Shaughnessy for the season and Geoff Swaim dealing with a concussion and ankle injury, Oliver couldn’t have found a more perfect time to get himself in the lineup.