Jaguars put Anton Harrison on IR ahead of knee surgery

Harrison hurt his right knee in Sunday's 19-17 win over Philadelphia at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. By Tuesday morning it was clear this wasn't a 1-week thing.

Ian Rapoport

@RapSheet

#Jaguars starting LT Anton Harrison, starter since 2023, is expected to undergo arthroscopic knee surgery when he returns from London, per me and @JFowlerESPN. During the surgery, the doctor will determine how long Trevor Lawrence’s blindside protector is out — weeks or months.

The surgery doubles as the diagnosis. Jacksonville won't know how long its blindside protector is out until the doctor gets in there and looks, and the 2 possible answers are very far apart.

Ian Rapoport

@RapSheet

Depending on what the surgeon sees during the procedure, Anton Harrison is either out 3-5 weeks (likely IR) or 3-4 months (out for the regular season).

Ian Rapoport

@RapSheet

#Jaguars starting LT Anton Harrison, starter since 2023, is expected to undergo arthroscopic knee surgery when he returns from London, per me and @JFowlerESPN. During the surgery, the doctor will determine how long Trevor Lawrence’s blindside protector is out — weeks or months. t.co/euMcFlKvBa

The injury happened early in the third quarter. According to the AP, coach Liam Coen said Harrison was trying to block on the turnback and the knee "just tweaked on him a little bit." ESPN reported he grabbed the knee after coming off a block and left on a cart. That's never a good sign, and the reports that followed lived up to it.

This one stings because of how much the Jaguars have put into Harrison. He went 27th overall out of Oklahoma in 2023 and spent 3 seasons at right tackle, missing just 3 games there. Jacksonville picked up his fifth-year option in April, then moved him to left tackle in training camp to protect Trevor Lawrence's blind side. According to the AP he's started 53 games for the Jaguars, and per the AP this is the team's first major injury of the season.

By Tuesday afternoon the paperwork was done. Harrison went on IR, so he's out at least the next 4 games even if the scope comes back clean, and the Jaguars made a couple of corresponding moves.

Kaevon Merriweather takes the open spot on the 53. The Bobenmoyer signing is a separate problem: the AP reports long snapper Ross Matiscik also hurt his shoulder in London, so the Jaguars added a veteran snapper. At left tackle, Walker Little steps in after replacing Harrison on Sunday. Little has started 39 games over 6 seasons in Jacksonville, which is about as much as you can ask from a backup tackle.

The schedule helps a little. Jacksonville is 4-1 and, per ESPN, plays Houston at Wembley on Sunday. The Texans come in at 1-4, but their pass rush is the reason losing your left tackle hurts. Little's first full start comes against them, and the surgery will tell us whether he's filling in for a month or for the whole regular season.