The Jacksonville Jaguars signed punter JK Scott to their active roster and offensive lineman D.J. Fluker to their practice squad on Friday.
Neither Alabama alumnus has played in the 2021 season, but Scott is squarely in Jacksonville’s plans for Sunday, when the Jaguars play the New England Patriots in their next-to-last game of the season.
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Jacksonville placed punter Logan Cooke on injured reserve on Tuesday because of a right knee injury. Cooke will not be able to play again this season.
Scott is now the only punter on the Jaguars’ active roster, although punter Joseph Charlton is on Jacksonville’s practice squad.
Scott entered the NFL in 2018 as a fifth-round draft choice of the Green Bay Packers after working as the Crimson Tide’s punter for four seasons.
In three seasons with Green Bay, Scott averaged 44.6 yards on 194 punts. But in 2021, the Packers replaced him with Corey Bojorquez, who was the NFL’s leading punter in 2020 with a 50.8-yard average for the Buffalo Bills.
Friday opened for Jacksonville with 27 players on reserve/COVID-19 (including players from the active roster, practice squad and injured reserve). The Jaguars were able to take seven players off the list on Friday.
With 96 starts over the previous eight seasons and the ability to play guard and tackle, Fluker will provide Jacksonville with an emergency option for Sunday’s game. Each team can elevate two players from the practice squad for every game and also can use practice-squad players as replacements for players on reserve/COVID-19.
While Fluker has not played this season, he hasn’t been out of the NFL the whole time. He was on the Las Vegas Raiders’ practice squad from Oct. 20 through Dec. 2.
The 11th player picked in the 2013 NFL Draft, Fluker had signed with the Miami Dolphins in the offseason. But Miami placed the former McGill-Toolen/Foley standout on injured reserve on July 29 and released him four days later with an injury settlement after he’d had meniscus surgery.
While Scott and Fluker returned to the NFL on Friday, defensive lineman Da’Shawn Hand, another former Alabama standout, left the league when the Indianapolis Colts released him from their practice squad.
Hand signed with the Colts on Dec. 21 after the Detroit Lions released him on Nov. 30 from injured reserve.
During his four seasons with the Lions, Hand went on injured reserve five times. He played in 29 games and missed 30.
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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.