5 Jacksonville Jaguars whose stock is up in the preseason

Jacksonville Jaguars player trending up No. 5 – C.J. Henderson

These past couple of months have been hectic for second-year cornerback C.J. Henderson. The Florida product showed flashes in 2020 but a groin injury cut his rookie campaign short. Earlier this year, he underwent labrum surgery and looked poised to pick up where he left off last season. Alas, he was placed on the COVID-19/Reserve list at the end of July and missed a good fraction of training camp.

For a moment, things looked dire for Henderson, at least from the outside. Jeremy Fowler of ESPN reported that several NFL teams believed the 2020 first-round pick was available. However, assistant head coach Charlie Strong put an end to any potential trade talks, telling the local media the cornerback made the Jags a better team and that they wanted to help him succeed.

Henderson was activated from the COVID-19 list on August the sixth and quickly made up for the time he lost. He caught up with the team and he was soon back with the first-team defense. Against the Browns in Week 1 of the preseason, he showed he was still the talented player the Jaguars drafted ninth overall in last year’s selection meeting, posting a Pro Fooball Focus overall grade of 74.6 and logging two pass deflections.

Shaquill Griffin is the favorite to start at one cornerback spot in Week 1 of the regular season. If Henderson keeps playing the way he did versus Cleveland, he will line up opposite Griffin.