JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Jaguars won big and lost a big defensive piece on Thursday night.
Defensive lineman Dawuane Smoot is feared to have suffered a torn Achilles during a 19-3 win over the Jets.
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Smoot was a third-round pick out of Illinois in 2017 and has been one of the team’s most reliable defensive players since entering the league. His five sacks this season were just one off his career high of six set last year.
It marks the second time in as many seasons where the Jaguars have lost an impact player to an Achilles tear when they’ve played at New York. Running back James Robinson suffered the same injury last year. Robinson returned this year and the team traded him to the Jets.
For Smoot, the injury comes at a terrible time. In addition to being an integral part of Jacksonville’s defense, Smoot was in the final year of a two-year, $10 million extension he signed with the team in 2021. He is set to become an unrestricted free agent in 2023.
Smoot and his wife, Aumari, made international news last year when their daughter, Ahlani, was born at home in the middle of the night. Smoot helped deliver his daughter on the floor of the family living room. Aumari and a 911 operator helped talk Smoot through the process.