CHICK REMAINS POSSIBILITY
There remains a chance John Chick could play Sunday.
Chick, a defensive end who has spent the season on the Physically Unable to Perform list, participated in team drills on Wednesday, according to Jaguars Head Coach Mike Mularkey. He worked in pads in individual drills last week, but did not work team drills.
"John is going to do a little more today," Mularkey said Wednesday as the Jaguars (1-5) prepared to play the Green Bay Packers (4-3) in Green Bay Sunday. "Last week we did some one-on-one with him. We did stuff off to the side.
"That guy's amazing to come back off the injury and to rehab as hard as he has. I'm excited for him. This guy is chomping at the bit to get out there."
Chick, the 2009 CFL Defensive Player of the Year, registered 2.5 sacks last season before sustaining the patellar tendon injury that has kept him out this season. He can be activated from the PUP list any time during the next two weeks.
"I'm going to give this week a good look at him," Mularkey said Wednesday when asked if Chick could be activated this week. "He certainly thinks he can. He thought last week. He thought about a month ago that he could. That's just the way he is.
"He's definitely earned the opportunity to show it, especially this week."
COMPETIVE ISSUE
Mularkey on Wednesday declined to discuss the specifics of injuries to running back Maurice Jones-Drew and quarterback Blaine Gabbert.
That was true despite various media reports regarding each situation.
"The reason we're really adamant about talking about injuries is I think it can be a competitive edge to opponents," Mularkey said. "I know it is for us. I know how people perceive when they hear things. You try to use any edge you can on anything in a game. Injuries are a part of that.
"I'm always cautious about it. I'm not trying to hide anything from anybody. I'm trying to help our team win however we can."
INJURY REPORT
Jones-Drew wasn't the only Jaguars player out of practice Wednesday.
Jones-Drew, the Jaguars' three-time Pro Bowl running back, missed practice Wednesday with a foot sprain that will keep him out of Sunday's game at Green Bay, and safety Dwight Lowery (ankle), fullback Montell Owens (shoulder), fullback Greg Jones (hip), cornerback Rashean Mathis (foot), center Brad Meester (not injury related) and linebacker Daryl Smith (groin) also missed practice.
Mularkey said Owens and Mathis may practice Thursday, while neither Lowery nor Smith is expected to play Sunday.
Wide receiver Laurent Robinson, out the last two games with a concussion, passed a concussion test this week and returned to practice on a non-contact basis Wednesday, Mularkey said.
"There's not one guy in there who doesn't have something that hurts," Mularkey said. "They all have something."
Also Wednesday, cornerback Derek Cox (back) was limited.
MULARKEY SAYS
"I'm trying to stay positive. That's what I believe in. I think that's what they need. These guys have done everything we've asked and we've just come up short. We're trying to stay positive, but still be demanding in what we need to get done to get on track and get this thing going."
MAURICE JONES-DREW SAYS
"We don't want to 'catch' anything; we want to make a break. You don't want anyone to give you anything, and so I feel like we keep working. Something is going to turn for us, but the only way it's going to turn is if we make it turn. We have to be the one that makes those plays, be in the right position, whatever it may be so we don't have to feel like this next week."
BLAINE GABBERT SAYS
"I don't think I've ever missed a game except for high school. It's just something you have to manage. . . There is always going to be something. You're always going to be in pain whether it's your arms, legs, knees, neck that's just part of the game it's part of the sport. You just have to manage it and deal with it the best you can."
INSIDE SLANT
As Mularkey sees it, getting Gabbert repetitions is critical. That means Gabbert will take essentially all the repetitions in practice this week, as is typically the case with NFL starting quarterbacks. Mularkey was asked on Wednesday about the possibility of giving backup Chad Henne more reps given that Gabbert left this past Sunday's game with a shoulder injury. "To say I am not totally concerned (about Gabbert being re-injured) is not true," Mularkey said. "There's an ounce of it, but these guys (the Packers) do enough things defensively that Blaine needs to see as many reps as he possibly can so he's well prepared." Mularkey on Wednesday said he is confident Gabbert will play and be effective. "You don't know the extent of it when you're on the sideline and you don't have an MRI," he said of Gabbert leaving Sunday's game. "Everybody's different. There have been times he's had some things that hurt and continued to play. This one, we thought it was best for him not to."
WHAT'S NEXT
The Jaguars will practice without pads Thursday and Friday, then travel to Green Bay to play the Packers on Sunday.
QUICK HITS
*Look for linebacker Julian Stanford to make a start Sunday. Mularkey said Stanford, a rookie free agent from Wagner, played well against Oakland after opening in the base defense.
*The Jaguars do not currently plan to add a quarterback, Mularkey said, adding that practice squad quarterback John Parker Wilson is an option if necessary. "John Parker Wilson has been in the system for a number of years now," Mularkey said. "He's still pretty up on what we're doing. He doesn't take the snaps that Chad would, but John Parker in Atlanta took some snaps for us."
*Henne and Mularkey on Wednesday each said there were times the reserve quarterback was impatient this past Sunday against the Raiders. "Sometimes, you kind of want to get the ball out if you feel pressure and get it in the right places," Henne said. "It was the first time I had actually played in a true regular-season game in over a year. I just have to settle down and I think after a while when the game starting going I felt settling in my feet and getting back to how I can play." Henne completed 9 of 20 passes for 71 yards against Oakland.
