JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Jacksonville Jaguars coach Doug Marrone is hoping for a repeat of some sixth-round magic.
Marrone is starting rookie quarterback Jake Luton against the Houston Texans on Sunday in place of Gardner Minshew, who is out indefinitely with a fracture and ligament damage in his right thumb. Marrone is going with the sixth-round pick out of Oregon State despite the fact that he’s been inactive for every game behind veteran Mike Glennon, who has thrown 36 touchdown passes in 22 career starts.
“I didn’t feel that Jake might have been ready right away to bring him up there, so Mike had the experience so we brought him up there [to be the No. 2 QB each week],” Marrone said. “And then Jake’s done a nice job. I think Jake has a high ceiling, and that’s my opinion of him. I mean, not to take anything away from Mike, I’ve got a ton of respect for him, and I told that to Mike. I just want to see where this kid’s at.
“Might as well look. Might as well see what we have. Go ahead and play him and let’s go.”
Marrone said he has no idea how long Minshew, whom the Jaguars drafted in the sixth round in 2019, will be out — he said he didn’t consider putting Minshew on IR at this point — but there’s no guarantee he’ll regain the starting job if Luton plays well against the Texans and beyond.
“You’d like to as a coach be able to say, yeah, as soon as Gardner’s ready he’ll be able to come back. But I think when you’re at the record we are, where we are now at 1-6, we’ve got to see what this kid can do,” Marrone said. “If this kid comes in and plays extremely well, then what? Then you’re going to say, how come you’re going to bench him and play the other kid? I just think it’s common sense. Opportunities create themselves.
“If he does well, then we’ll see where we’re going and make that decision when the time comes.”
Luton completed 62.1% of his passes for 5,227 yards and 42 touchdowns with 11 interceptions in 23 games with Oregon State from 2017 to ’19. He threw 28 touchdown passes and only three interceptions in his final season with the Beavers.
Minshew got off to a hot start in 2020, completing 75.4% of his passes for 512 yards and six touchdowns with two interceptions in the Jaguars’ first two games, but he struggled after that. He completed a season-low 51.9% (14-for-27) for 173 yards and two touchdowns in the Jaguars’ last game, a 39-29 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers on Oct. 25. He airmailed a pass to a wide-open DJ Chark on the first play, and the Jaguars’ offense started the game with four consecutive three-and-outs. Minshew went 0-for-3 and was sacked three times in those four possessions.
Marrone said he was told after the game that Minshew’s thumb was hurting, but he didn’t find out the severity of the injury until two days later, after Minshew saw a hand specialist and had further tests. A source told ESPN’s Adam Schefter that Minshew first hurt his thumb against Houston on Oct. 11 and did not tell the team until last week. Marrone said Minshew will not be disciplined for hiding the injury for two weeks.
Minshew has completed 65.9% of his passes for 1,855 yards and 13 touchdowns with five interceptions this season. He also has lost three fumbles, tied for the second most among all quarterbacks. However, Minshew has the NFL’s third-best passer rating and fourth-best completion percentage on third down, per ESPN Stats & Information.