Dede Westbrook Placed on Injured Reserve with Core Injury

The Jacksonville Jaguars placed rookie wide receiver Dede Westbrook on injured reserve Friday, the Florida Times-Union's Ryan O'Halloran reported.

Westbrook is listed as having a core muscle injury on the Jaguars' Week 1 injury report.

A fourth-round pick out of Oklahoma, he appeared in three preseason games, catching 13 passes for 288 yards and two touchdowns.

The news does lead to some questions as to why Westbrook played in Jacksonville's final preseason game. Prior to the 13-7 victory over the Atlanta Falcons, Jaguars head coach Doug Marrone told reporters he was somewhat concerned with how Westbrook was moving in practice.

"I felt pretty confident the other day that he was going to be able to play," Marrone said Aug. 29, per ESPN.com's Michael DiRocco. "Right now I'm not sure. I'm really not. I'm probably more in a hoping mode that he plays, but I don't know. We'll take that up all the way until game time."

Going on IR doesn't end Westbrook's rookie campaign. He'll be out for a minimum of eight weeks, with Jacksonville's Week 9 matchup with the Cincinnati Bengals the first game in which he'll be eligible to play.

The Jaguars still have Allen Robinson, Allen Hurns and Marqise Lee available in the passing game, so the cupboard isn't bare with Westbrook unavailable.

Considering how well he played in the preseason, though, missing at least half the season isn't good news for his overall development. He turns 24 in November as well, so he's slightly older than the typical first-year wideout, putting a little more of a premium on whatever time he will be absent.