The Jacksonville Jaguars have released and then re-signed Josh Pederson all in the period of a couple of days. Doug Pederson’s son was removed from the Jaguars roster only to be reinstated to the practice squad a day after his father cut him.
The move that initially illustrated the brutality of the NFL and how no one is spared when it comes to improving the quality of the team is now raising eyebrows, with people blaming Doug Pederson for nepotism.
No NFL Experience
With NFL teams facing a deadline to trim their rosters, coach Doug Pederson had no choice but to cut people from his squad. As it became known later, that list also included tight end Josh Pederson, the coach’s own son, whom the Jaguars signed in July from USFL side the Houston Gamblers. But there was nothing surprising in that move, as Josh Pederson has zero NFL experience.
The tight end spent four years with Louisiana-Monroe before going undrafted in 2020 and 2021. He then joined the Houston Gamblers in 2022, where he played in all 10 games he was eligible for. With 24 receptions for 325 yards, Pederson placed second on the team and was signed by the Jaguars in July. The Jacksonville-based team didn’t say the tight end was the son of their coach, though.
Way Down on the Jaguars’ Depth Chart
Before he was cut and then re-signed to the practice squad, Pederson was considered to be the fifth option for the Jaguars behind Evan Engram, Luke Farrell, Brenton Strange, and Leonard Tyrell in the pecking order.
During the three pre-season games the Jaguars played, Pederson could only manage one bad snap and had no catches. So, it was to be expected that he would be one of those to be cut from the roster.
However, against all expectations, the Jaguars have performed a U-turn and re-signed Doug Pederson’s son. If the coach wanted to avoid being accused of nepotism, cutting and re-signing his son with all the media in attendance was probably not the best way to do that. At least Thanksgiving dinner was saved.