Olivier Vernon Ruled Out for Week 1 vs. Jaguars with Ankle Injury

New York Giants head coach Pat Shurmur essentially ruled outside linebacker Olivier Vernon out for Sunday's regular-season opener against the Jacksonville Jaguars.

According to the Giants' official Twitter account, Shurmur said the following regarding Vernon's status Friday: "It's safe to say that Olivier Vernon isn't going to make it this week. ... He's making progress and we'd love to have him on the field."

Vernon has not practiced this week due to a high ankle sprain.

Vernon is set to enter his third season with the Giants after spending the first four campaigns of his NFL career with the Miami Dolphins.

The 27-year-old veteran ranked second on the team with 6.5 sacks in 2017, but he is the top returning player in that category after the Giants traded Jason Pierre-Paul to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during the offseason.

The next-highest sack total from 2017 among returning players is 1.5 by defensive tackle Damon Harrison since linebacker Devon Kennard signed with the Detroit Lions and linebacker Calvin Munson is on the practice squad.

With Vernon out, veteran Connor Barwin and third-round rookie Lorenzo Carter will likely fill in across from starting strong-side linebacker Kareem Martin.

Barwin has 55.5 career sacks to his credit, and he registered five last season in 14 games with the Los Angeles Rams.

Still, it will be difficult to replace the 44 career sacks and solid play against the run that Vernon brings to the table.