Jacksonville’s defense has been no stranger to key injuries this season, with all of Oluokun, Darnell Savage, and Tyson Campbell missing significant time. Those absences have manifested in the team allowing the sixth most total yards per game and the second most pass yards per game through the first seven weeks. All three key players will be healthy together in Week 8 for the first time since their season opener.

Oluokun will have a 21-day window to practice before being activated from injured reserve. He came down with a case of plantar fascitis that caused him to leave Jacksonville’s Week 3 game against the Bills. The Jaguars defense has, frankly, been lost without him. Whenever Oluokun does come back, it will be a big boost for the unit.

The defensive captain had already been ruled out for Week 4 against the Texans and will now miss the following three games on injured reserve. The Jaguars are extremely shorthanded on the defensive side of the ball with cornerback Tyson Campbell already on injured reserve and Darnell Savage downgraded from questionable to out. That’s not the best setup for a game against the Texans on deck in Week 4.

This means that Pederson believes Oluokun can return before missing the requisite four games that any player placed on IR must miss. Oluokun is reportedly dealing with plantar fasciitis and is expected to miss “several weeks,” but it sounds like a return sometime next month is well within reach. Oluokun has totaled 22 tackles and one sack in three games this season and will be sorely missed by the 0-3 Jaguars while he is out.