Signing Jamaal Charles is the Right Move for the Jaguars

The Jacksonville Jaguars added to their depleted running back corps by signing free agent Jamaal Charles to a contract on Tuesday.

You knew the Jacksonville Jaguars would add another running back or two to their depleted running back situation. The team did just that in signing former Kansas City Chiefs and Denver star Jamaal Charles on Wednesday. The move comes one day after the team announced Corey Grant would miss the remainder of the 2018 season with a Lisfranc injury he suffered on Sunday.

In a corresponding move on Wednesday, the team released running back Brandon Wilds.

The Jaguars also announced they have signed rookie running back Dave Williams off Denver’s practice squad to the active roster and have promoted first-year tight end David Grinnage from their practice squad to the 53-man active roster. Jacksonville also added rookie tight end Pharoah McKever to the practice squad.

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With the loss of Leonard Fournette to a hamstring injury that still has him on the shelf for an unspecified amount of time and T.J. Yeldon dealing with an ankle injury despite playing every game this season, adding a veteran like Charles.

The team hopes there is some tread left on his 31-year-old tires but is a solid move by the organization to find a player with experience as a lead back.

Charles was a third-round pick out of Texas in the 2008 NFL Draft by the Chiefs. He played for Kansas City until last season when he was released and signed by their division rival Denver.

For the season, he had 296 rushing yards with one touchdown. He also caught 23 passes for 129 yards.

As the hamstring injury continues to linger for Fournette, Charles figures to share the rushing load with Yeldon, who leads the team in yards this season with 258 yards.

"Per Michael DiRocco of ESPN.com, “Charles became the leading rusher in Chiefs history (7,260 yards) despite a series of knee injuries. In nine seasons with Kansas City, Charles scored 64 total touchdowns in 103 games and was named to the Pro Bowl four times. He had four seasons with at least 40 receptions.”"

In Charles, the Jaguars are getting a four-time Pro Bowl performer (2010, 2012–2014) and two-time first-team All-Pro (2010, 2013). In 2013, he led the NFL in rushing touchdowns.

At 5-foot-11 and 199 pounds, he is not the punishing back Fournette is through the line of scrimmage, but does offer the Jaguars a change of pace to the bigger Yeldon.

How many carries Charles gets on Sunday when the Jaguars take on the Dallas Cowboys is not yet known. Yeldon will get the start like he did last week against the Chiefs.

Charles has had some health concerns in the past of his own. He tore his right ACL in October 2015. It was the second time he suffered that injury. He tore the left ACL in 2011. He had multiple knee surgeries in 2016.