Making his preseason debut with the Jacksonville Jaguars, Julius Thomas was hoping to give Jaguars fans a little taste of what he would bring to the team this season. Unfortunately, his night and preseason was over after just one reception. Thomas walked off the field against the Pittsburgh Steelers and was later diagnosed with a fracture in his hand when he came down after a hit.
This isn't the start Jacksonville was hoping for when they signed Thomas to a five-year, $46 million deal. In an ideal situation, Thomas would play in all four games and be out there for all of training camp, developing chemistry with quarterback Blake Bortles. Now Thomas will miss the rest of the preseason and most of training camp, though Jaguars' reporter Ryan O'Halloran reported that the Jaguars believe it is a small fracture.
Fortunately, the injury doesn't appear to be significant. Adam Schefter shared Gus Bradley's belief that Thomas will ideally be back for the regular season opener on September 13 against the Carolina Panthers. While Thomas won't get that extra time to work with Bortles, Jacksonville should also be pleased with how Bortles performed in the preseason opener. The second-year quarterback completed 11-of-15 passes for 118 yards and added a four-yard rushing touchdown.
Fantasy Spin:
With the latest update indicating Thomas is not expected to miss any regular season games, Thomas' 70th overall average draft position (ADP) shouldn't take a hit. It may hurt production wise that Thomas and Bortles couldn't get work together in games, but the two have certainly worked together during OTA's, minicamp and likely in private workouts between the two.
Fantasy owners should also realize there is not going to be nearly the same production in Jacksonville as we saw in Denver. Bortles must still prove he can complete more than 59 percent of his passes and put his receiving options in the best position to succeed. Likely a seventh or eighth round pick in fantasy leagues, fantasy players might be better off looking elsewhere.