Jaguars place Shaq Griffin on injured reserve, sign CB Tevaughn Campbell to active roster

On Wednesday, the Jaguars placed starting cornerback Shaq Griffin on injured reserve due to a back injury suffered during the team's Week 6 loss to the Indianapolis Colts. Griffin will be eligible to be activated in Week 13 when the Jaguars head to Detroit to face off against the Lions.

After placing Griffin on IR, the team signed Las Vegas Raiders CB Tevaughn Campbell off the practice squad. The team officially announced his signing Thursday, a day after Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson indicated the team would be adding a corner.

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Campbell, 29, made his way from the Canadian Football League to the National Football League after being signed to a reserve/future contract with the New York Jets. He made his NFL debut in 2020 with the Los Angeles Chargers. He started three games that season, including against the New York Jets, recording a pick-six against quarterback Joe Flacco.

In 2021, Campbell made seven starts for the Chargers, recording 38 tackles (30 solo), four pass breakups, two forced rumbles and one fumble recovery in 16 games.

"It really doesn't change a bunch because we have confidence in all our guys back there and [cornerback] Tre [Herndon] played well last week," Jaguars defensive coordinator Mike Caldwell said on Thursday when asked about how losing Griffin will change the team's defense.

"Just an opportunity for guys to step up. Shaq's a loss and he'll be around and hopefully he [has a] speedy recovery but, now it's an opportunity for the next guy to get up."

Tre Herndon's role increases in Griffin's absence

During the team's loss against the Giants on Sunday, Jacksonville transitioned to fifth-year CB Tre Herndon in replacing Griffin on the outside in nickel. Given the team plays in in nickel on the majority of its plays, Herndon will be one of the team's starters by snap count.

Against the Giants, for example, Herndon played 66 percent (51 out of 77) defensive snaps. Griffin's injury also increases the total number of snaps nickel defensive back Darious Williams will play. Against the Giants, Williams played 70 snaps, the most he's played this year. For context, Willaims played just 34 snaps in Week 4 and 61 snaps in Week 6.

On Monday, Pederson said he thought Herndon did a nice job against New York.

“I know there were some plays over the top, but for the most part, for someone who’s coming in there and filling in and doing a nice job from a backup position, who knows what’s going to, as we move forward, if he’s going to have more of a full-time role there," Pederson said.

"We’ll see where Shaq (CB Shaquill Griffin) is this week. He played good. He plays tough. He plays hard. I’m excited about him getting more opportunities.”

Herndon allowed one reception for 32 yards and a touchdown against New York. The touchdown came on the Giants' first drive of the game, a deep-shot throw from Giants quarterback Daniel Jones to receiver Darius Slayton. Still, the receiver played well physically and didn't allow anything else to be completed when thrown his way.

Herndon has started 30 games in his five-year career in Jacksonville after being signed as an undrafted free agent by the team in 2018.

With Herndon outside in base nickel packages, Williams will continue to man the slot while playing outside in plays with four defensive backs on the field. Williams was the team's highest-graded cover corner, according to Pro Football Focus. He had two pass breakups.

Jaguars cornerback Tyson Campbell has a lot of faith in the team's depth at the position, noting on Wednesday but still noted that Griffin is an important piece to the secondary.

"It doesn't change much. Shaq was a big piece of our secondary but, we definitely got trust in the guys in our room and we believe everybody can make a positive impact in this defense," Campbell said.

"So, we'll pick up where we left off and when Shaq gets better, [he will] just pop back in and help us continue to grow."

Demetrius Harvey is the Jacksonville Jaguars reporter for the Florida Times-Union. You can follow him on Twitter at @Demetrius82.

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Jaguars put Shaq Griffin on injured reserve, sign CB Tevaughn Campbell