Chris Thompson officially signs with Jaguars on 1-year deal

The Jacksonville Jaguars signed former Washington running back Chris Thompson on a one-year deal, the team announced today.

The signing was first reported by ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler.

A former fifth round draft pick by Washington, Thompson has always been more of a pass-catching running back. Since 2015, when Thompson started playing a much more prominent role in the offense, he has averaged more than 41 receptions for 349 yards and just under two touchdowns a year.

The Jaguars failed to make any more additions to their running back room during the draft last week.

I think maybe it’s misunderstood of how we feel about the other guys we have in our room besides Leonard and Roc(quell Armstead) and Devine (Ozigbo),” Jaguars general manager Dave Caldwell said during his post-draft press conference.

“Those are two guys that as you look down, you start to get into the fourth, fifth round, and you’re like, ‘Do we like these guys better than Rock and Devine?’ And the answer is really no. So we felt like we had some guys that can make the team at other positions and come in and help right away and knowing that we have those two guys that we really like.”

The Jaguars are slated to enter the 2020 season with the clear front-runner at running back being Fournette, for now, with Thompson, Armstead, and Ozigbo as the primary backups at the position.

Look for Fournette, who accounted for 76 receptions last season - the most on the team -, to play less snaps on third down as long as Thompson is healthy. Thompson can add a true receiving back on third down for the team, allowing Fournette to get more rest.