The Sports Xchange

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Jacksonville Jaguars starting running back T.J. Yeldon was declared inactive for Sunday’s game against the Houston Texans.

Yeldon suffered a groin injury in last week’s game against Tampa Bay and had not practiced this week. The Jaguars were hopeful he might be ready to go by Sunday but after an early morning workout, the rookie from Alabama was put on the inactive list.

Yeldon is joined by wide receiver Marqise Lee and running back Bernard Pierce, who were both ruled out for the game on Friday due to injuries. Lee has now missed the last three games with a hamstring injury while Pierce will miss his first game this year due to a concussion. The team’s other inactives were safety James Sample, cornerback Nick Marshall, guard Tyler Shatley and defensive end Chris Smith.

For Houston, the good news was who was not on the inactive list. Defensive end J.J. Watt had been listed as questionable on Friday’s injury report with an illness, but Watt was not among the seven Texans declared inactive. The list did include three starters — receiver Nate Washington and starting strong safety Quintin Demps who were declared out on Friday due to hamstring injuries, and starting defensive end Jadeveon Clowney who did not practice this week due to an ankle injury.

The other four Texans declared inactive for Sunday were all backup players — linebacker Brian Peters, center Greg Mancz, guard Xavier Su’a-Filo and defensive end Jeoffrey Pagan.