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Sen’Derrick Marks: Will he be ready for week 1?

By Luke Sims

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Sen’Derrick Marks has the Jacksonville Jaguars in suspense with his knee injury that took him out at the end of the 2014 season. The cornerstone of the Jags defense, it was widely speculated that he may not be able to come back by the start of the season as he recovered from his torn ACL. It’s a tough injury to recover from and even with modern examples of successful (quick) rehabbing, it’s still a bit up in the air.

Fortunately, it sounds like the suspense will end early for Jags fans. While there are no guarantees in recoveries from ACL injuries, Marks thinks he’ll be ready, saying, “(I’m) not saying what’s exactly going to happen within the next two months, but I think I’m going to be pretty ready for it.”

This may be the best news for the Jaguars this offseason, especially after the loss of third overall draft pick Dante Fowler Jr. to an ACL injury during the rookie minicamp. Marks will be able to anchor the defense once again.

Marks’ value cannot be understated. He led the team in sacks, he dominated the center of the offensive line, and he opened up opportunities for the defense to make plays around him. It’s tough to dominate a game from the defensive tackle position and also have individual success, but with 8.5 sacks last season it is clear that Marks has managed to do both. He is a leader on and off the field and the Jaguars desperately need veterans like him to help transition the team to success as the young players all jostle for playing time.

While the news is good, there is no guarantee that Sen’Derrick Marks makes it back in time for week one. The optimism and hope is there, but he could always end up riding the bench for the first week. He could also enter the season on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list. As noted by others, if he did enter on the PUP list, he would miss the Jags’ first six games. That would be a tough pill to swallow for the Jags.

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