JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Here are five players to watch in the Jacksonville Jaguars' preseason game against the Detroit Lions at EverBank Field on Friday (8 p.m. ET).
FB Tyson Alualu: That's right, fullback. The Jaguars don't have one on the roster so they're lining Alualu up at the spot in short yardage. You can tell by listening to QB Blake Bortles and coach Gus Bradley that they're excited about Alualu there, too. The first time he lined up at that spot during camp he completely whiffed and didn't hit anybody, but since then he's been pretty darn good as a blocker. At 295 pounds, he's bigger than most fullbacks and the backs like running behind him. Bortles even joked that they're working on throwing him the ball, too. At least we think it was a joke.
DE Chris Clemons: This will be Clemons' first action of the preseason. He started camp on the active/non-football injury list and didn't play in the first two games. The Jaguars' pass rush has been pretty ineffective so far, with only three sacks -- two by undrafted rookie end Cap Capi. With rookie Dante Fowler Jr. gone for the season with a torn ACL, the Jaguars really need Clemons to step up in 2015. He's coming off a season in which he had 8.0 sacks, though three came in one game. This will be his first chance to prove that he can be effective in his 12th season.
RB Corey Grant: It appears he has all but locked up the kick return job. The undrafted rookie from Auburn is averaging 29.8 yards on four returns and he can cement his spot on the roster with another good performance against the Lions. He's also likely to get some work late in the game as a running back, but his real value is on special teams.
WR Bryan Walters: With Arrelious Benn on injured reserve with a broken collarbone, that seemingly opens up another spot in the 53-man roster projections because it looked like Benn was making the team. If the Jaguars want to keep a player similar to Benn, then Tandon Doss may be the choice. Like Benn, he's a bigger receiver (6-foot-2, 205 pounds). Walters isn't that big (6-0, 190) but he has very good hands. The Jaguars aren't likely to use many four-receiver sets in the regular season because of the presence of Julius Thomas, so the fourth and fifth receivers need to be special-teams players. Walters can do that.
RB T.J. Yeldon: The second-round pick from Alabama finally makes his preseason debut after missing the first two games because of a sprained finger on his left hand. He should get a decent amount of work, too, because Toby Gerhart is out with a strained abdominal muscle. Yeldon has been impressive in practice and the coaching staff is eager to see if that translates. Yeldon has an interesting running style, kind of gliding into the hole before accelerating.