JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- The Jaguars got two of their best offensive players back on the practice field Wednesday -- and potentially on the field for Sunday's critical AFC South matchup in Tennessee.
The team opened the 21-day practice window for receiver Christian Kirk (core muscle injury) to return from injured reserve, and coach Doug Pederson said quarterback Trevor Lawrence (sprained right AC joint) would be a limited participant in practice for the first time since he was injured against Tampa Bay on Dec. 24.
However, Pederson wouldn't go into how realistic the chances of one or both playing against the Titans are -- although he wouldn't rule it out, either.
"It's feeling better," Lawrence said of his throwing shoulder. "Certain movements bother [it] more than others. There's some things that I can do and there's some areas where I have totally normal strength and it's functional and all that, but in certain positions there's some aggravation. That's getting better every day but still would like to see that go down a little bit more before I just totally let it loose."
Lawrence said he has not done much throwing since the injury and was looking forward to testing the shoulder.
"Missing last week's game a little slower than I would've liked it to be progressing, but it actually feels pretty decent today," he said. "It's getting better every day, so just trying to be cautious but also, I guess, aggressive in how I'm trying to treat it and just everything I can to get back as quick as possible."
Lawrence was hurt against the Bucs when he dove for a first down on a fourth-down run. He did not practice last week and missed the Jaguars' 26-0 victory over Carolina, snapping a streak of 49 consecutive starts dating back to when the team drafted him first overall in 2021. C.J. Beathard started in his place; he completed 17 of 24 passes for 178 yards and was sacked three times.
Kirk said after Wednesday's practice that it felt surreal to be back practicing after only four weeks, adding that he tore his left adductor muscle from the bone when he came out of his cut before catching a 26-yard pass from Lawrence on the Jaguars' first offensive snap in their 34-31 overtime loss to Cincinnati on Dec. 4. He also said he had been dealing with a small tear in his right abdominal muscle for the previous five games, though he did not miss any practice time or game action.
"I had been running on an injured groin for a while and the day that it went, it was time for it to go," Kirk said. "So I'm definitely happy that I was able to get it fixed and now feel healthy. I'm just trying to do everything that I can to trust the process, trust the timeline, and just take it day by day."
Despite missing the past four games, Kirk is still third on the team in receptions (57) and receiving yards (787). Pederson said the team is going to be cautious with Kirk, as well.
"We don't want any setback, so this will be a slow, gradual process, but it'll be good to get him out there," Pederson said. "Right now he's just day-to-day. We've just got to see where he is at the end of the week."
The Jaguars (9-7) can win the AFC South by beating Tennessee (5-11) in Nashville on Sunday. That would give the Jaguars back-to-back division titles for just the second time in franchise history. They can still make the playoffs even if they lose to the Titans but would need help from several other teams.