Michael DiRocco, ESPN Staff WriterDec 13, 2024, 11:39 AM ET
- Michael DiRocco is an NFL reporter at ESPN. DiRocco covers the Jacksonville Jaguars. He previously covered the University of Florida for over a decade for ESPN.com and Florida Times-Union. DiRocco graduated from Jacksonville University and is a multiple APSE award winner. You can follow DiRocco on Twitter at @ESPNdirocco.
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Jacksonville Jaguars tight end Evan Engram will undergo surgery for a torn labrum in his left shoulder and will miss the rest of the season, head coach Doug Pederson said Friday morning.
Engram, who also missed four games earlier in the season with a hamstring injury, hurt his shoulder during the first half of last Sunday's 10-6 victory over Tennessee in Nashville.
Pederson said earlier in the week that he anticipated that Engram would be able to play in Sunday's game against the New York Jets, but he said Friday an additional MRI revealed the full extent of the injury.
Engram finishes his third season with the Jaguars with 47 catches for 365 yards and one touchdown, a significant dropoff from his 114 catches in 2023.
That was a franchise record for a tight end and two shy of tying the overall franchise record for single-season receptions, set by Jimmy Smith in 1999. Second-year tight end Brenton Strange will now feature more prominently in the pass game, Pederson said.
"Next man up," Pederson said. "Brenton, Luke [Farrell], Josiah [Deguara], the entire offense, that's what you've got to do. You've just got to rally and have that next man up mentality."
Engram is the fourth offensive starter to be lost for the season, joining receiver Christian Kirk (broken collarbone), receiver Gabe Davis (knee), and quarterback Trevor Lawrence (concussion/shoulder). That group will have missed a combined total of 31 games.