Jacksonville Jaguars will have the priciest backup in all of football for the rest of the season. Jags’ head coach Doug Marrone announced on Monday that the team will reinstall rookie Gardner Minshew as a starting quarterback in a move that will send Super Bowl LII MVP Nick Foles to the bench.
Marrone’s decision comes after Foles was benched in 28-11 loss to Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday following a scoreless first half.
“Obviously it was a tough deal,” said Marrone. “Nick coming back from injury and us not being able to do a good enough job around him, really. So we feel with Gardner’s mobility and elusiveness, it can give us a better chance of winning with the way we’re playing right now because we’re all not doing a good enough job.”
Jaguars signed Nick Foles to a four-year, $88 million contract in the off season which included a franchise-record $50.125 million in guarantees. However, Foles’ time in Jacksonville was off to a bad start as he suffered a shoulder injury in his first game which landed him on the injured reserve list. In his absence, Minshew took over and managed to post a 4-4 record as a starter.
Foles returned in Week 11 and took over the starting position, but ended up struggling for most of the time he spent on the field. In three games since his return, he passed for only 661 yards and two touchdowns.
