Injuries mounting: Jaguars place Travis Hunter, Eric Murray on injured reserve

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Jaguars got more bad news on the injury front Friday morning when the team place rookie two-way star Travis Hunter and safety Eric Murray on injured reserve. It’s the latest in a terrible injury stretch for the Jaguars as they return for the season’s second half more beat up than they’ve been all season.

Hunter was limited in practice on Wednesday before suffering a noncontact knee injury on Thursday. Murray, a free agent signee from the Texans, had been out with a neck injury. Going on the injured list means that both players will miss at least four games before being eligible to return to the lineup.

ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported later Friday that testing revealed Hunter’s ACL was intact, which is good news for the Jaguars. An ACL tear would be a season-ending injury.

Jacksonville (4-3) returns from its bye week on Sunday with a trip to Las Vegas to face the Raiders (2-5). The offense has been especially ragged in losses to the Seahawks (20-12) and Rams (35-7) in the games before the bye week, but Hunter had flashed on offense in his last game out.

“It’s definitely not ideal timing, not that any injury is ever ideal timing. But you got to believe his mental, the makeup, his general attitude towards life and how he handles dealing with specific situations. I have a lot of belief in Travis as a person, as a competitor to come back better than ever,” head coach Liam Coen said.

The loss is significant for myriad reasons, but the biggest may be the aura that Hunter brings to both sides of the ball. He’s attempting to be the NFL’s first full-time two-way player in a generation, and has already made his presence felt on both sides of the ball. Jacksonville drafted Hunter No. 2, making the boldest draft day deal in franchise history and moving up from the fifth spot to take Hunter. They sent out next year’s first-round pick to Cleveland as part of the deal.

Jacksonville’s rookie class has been decimated by injuries. Safety Caleb Ransaw (third round) and Jalen McLeod (sixth round) haven’t played this season due to injuries. Offensive lineman Wyatt Milum has also been banged up most of the season.

Hunter is coming off a career game in a 35-7 loss to the Rams in London, catching eight passes for 101 yards and his first touchdown. With the erratic play of the team’s receivers (Jacksonville leads the league with 25 dropped passes), Hunter’s emergence on that side of the ball was big. Second-year player Brian Thomas Jr. has been wildly inconsistent, and free agent Dyami Brown has been lackluster. Coen said it’ll be a group effort to help in Hunter’s absence.

“I don’t know if it’s anybody, necessarily specific. It’s the whole crew. Go out and let’s go perform. Go back to training camp days that Travis was on defense and it was Dyami, BT and Parker [WR Parker Washington] rolling at the receiver positions and did some really good things,” Coen said. “So, I have a lot of confidence in these guys. It’s a great opportunity for all of us to work through a little adversity and the guys to go out and perform at a high level.”

Coen said the team has a good number of cornerbacks, so he doesn’t expect Hunter’s absence to affect the roster composition, but they will look to have more receivers ready to play on Sunday vs. the Raiders.

“Yeah, you just feel bad for the guy, for the kid, for our team, for everything. But he’s in good spirits right now, and minor setback for a major comeback. That’s just the way it’s got to be,” Coen said.

Murray’s absence means Jacksonville will lean more on Antonio Johnson at safety in the coming weeks.

“Man Antonio, I thought he had a really good week of practice. Guy obviously made a huge play for us at Houston, has been a big part of our dime packages throughout the year,” Coen said. “Being able to move him around in different positions in terms of playing that linebacker, the safety, a lot of talent and he knows, ‘Hey man, I got a great opportunity here.’ And I have a lot of confidence in him, great athlete, long, rangey.”