JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – On Sunday the Jacksonville Jaguars suspended cornerback Jalen Ramsey and defensive end Dante Fowler Jr. for "violating team rules and for conduct unbecoming of a Jaguars football player.”
This decision was made by the team following Fowler’s skirmish with fellow defensive end Yannick Ngakoue. The incident was filmed by a local member of the media and Ramsey voiced his displeasure with a profane rant.
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The team has not announced the length of the suspensions but according to several reports both players will miss a week of training camp.
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On Tuesday the Jaguars will head north to Minnesota for a pair of joint practices against the Vikings. Both Wednesday and Thursday’s practice sessions will provide the Jaguars an opportunity to practice against someone other than a teammate for the first time during training camp.
Missing the entire week of practice, including Saturday’s preseason game is much bigger deal for Fowler than it is Ramsey. Here’s why:
After coming off of abdominal surgery, Ramsey only played in one preseason game in 2017. From there he went on to have an All-Pro season. While it would’ve been fun to see Ramsey match up against Minnesota’s Stefon Diggs and Adam Thielen, the past has proven that missing a week shouldn’t have any impact on his 2018 season.
It’s hard to make that same argument for Fowler. Sunday was only the second training camp practice of the year for the former third overall pick. Fowler missed the entire off-season program and the first two-and-a-half weeks of training camp while recovering from a shoulder injury.
The only way to get in football shape is by practicing in shoulder pads and a helmet. Fowler didn’t look to be favoring his shoulder during any of the two practices he’s participated in so far. However missing a week of practice as well as a preseason game is a big blow to his recovery process.
Fowler was already playing catch-up and needs every practice repetition he can get. Especially given that he will miss the season opener, due to an arrest in July of 2017.