Calais Campbell: ‘I’m still holding out a little hope’ on Telvin Smith rejoining team

Jacksonville Jaguars defensive end Calais Campbell hopes Telvin Smith will rejoin the team after unexpectedly announcing he would sit out the 2019 NFL season.

“I’m still holding out a little hope,” Campbell said of Telvin returning. “He makes our team better.”

Much has been rumored as to the reasoning behind Smith’s absence ever since head coach Doug Marrone stated the team had not been in contact with Smith at the beginning of the team’s off-season workout program, an action that seemed out of character for a player who has been the team’s defensive captain and a self-proclaimed protegee of former middle linebacker Paul Posluszny, a player who was always a team-first guy.

General manager Dave Caldwell furthered the speculation when he stated, “we’ll see” when asked about Smith’s immediate future with the team.