The Jacksonville Jaguars have placed defensive end B.J. Green II on injured reserve after the elbow injury he suffered in Week 1, forcing an early adjustment to a defensive front that opened the season with a strong performance.
Jacksonville announced Wednesday that linebacker Jack Kiser has been signed from the practice squad to the active roster and defensive end BJ Ojulari has joined the practice squad. The moves give the Jaguars a new combination of immediate roster depth and longer-term pass-rush insurance while Green is unavailable.
Green will miss at least four games
Green left Jacksonville’s 34-10 Week 1 win over Cleveland with an elbow injury and did not return. By placing him on injured reserve, the Jaguars guarantee that he will miss at least the next four games rather than remaining a week-to-week question on the active roster.
That is a meaningful interruption for a young defensive lineman who had worked his way into the rotation after making the team as an undrafted player. Green appeared in 14 games as a rookie in 2025 and entered this season with a chance to earn a larger role behind Jacksonville’s established edge defenders.
FSN’s Week 1 recap of Jacksonville’s 34-10 win over Cleveland focused on the Jaguars’ dominant overall start. Green’s injury is one of the costs from that opener and gives the defensive staff its first real depth-management challenge of the season.
Jack Kiser gets the active-roster spot
The Jaguars used Green’s roster opening to promote Jack Kiser from the practice squad. Kiser was a fourth-round pick in 2025 and had been working back from a knee injury that disrupted his summer before he returned to Jacksonville on the practice squad.
His promotion does not mean he will simply replace Green snap for snap. Kiser is a linebacker, so the move is better viewed as Jacksonville choosing the best player for the open 53-man spot while handling Green’s edge and defensive-line snaps elsewhere in the rotation.
That approach gives the Jaguars flexibility. They can use Kiser on defense and special teams while leaning on their existing defensive-front depth, rather than forcing a newly added player directly into Green’s exact role.
BJ Ojulari gives Jacksonville a developmental pass-rush option
Ojulari is the most intriguing addition because of his draft pedigree and position. The former LSU edge rusher was selected in the second round by Arizona in 2023 and showed early pass-rush promise before injuries disrupted the next two seasons.
Jacksonville’s official transaction announcement lists Ojulari on the practice squad, which gives the coaching staff time to evaluate his conditioning and fit without requiring an immediate game-day role. If he adapts quickly, he could eventually provide another outside-rush option behind Josh Hines-Allen and Travon Walker.
That makes the timing logical. Green’s injured-reserve stint creates a multi-week need for depth, and Ojulari offers more upside than a purely emergency signing even though he is not yet on the active roster.
The Jaguars do not need to panic after one injury
Jacksonville’s defensive front remains built around established starters, so Green’s absence should not force a structural overhaul. The issue is rotational depth: early-season injuries can quickly increase the snap counts of starters and reduce the coaching staff’s ability to keep pass rushers fresh.
By promoting Kiser and adding Ojulari, the Jaguars are spreading the response across the roster instead of treating one transaction as the entire solution. Kiser helps the active roster immediately, while Ojulari gives the team a player who could grow into a more direct defensive-front role.
What to watch next
The next step is seeing which defensive linemen absorb Green’s snaps in Week 2 and whether Ojulari is elevated once he has practiced in the system. Kiser’s special-teams usage will also help determine how much flexibility Jacksonville gains from the promotion.
Green’s minimum four-game absence means the Jaguars have time to evaluate the new arrangement rather than make another move immediately. If the current depth holds up, Jacksonville can let Green recover without rushing the roster response.
Sources
- Jacksonville Jaguars: Green placed on IR; Kiser promoted; Ojulari signed to practice squad (September 16, 2026)
- NFL.com: Jaguars Week 2 roster and injury updates (September 16, 2026)
- Pro Football Rumors: Jaguars add BJ Ojulari to the practice squad (September 16, 2026)