Running back Ryquell Armstead is expected to play Sunday, five days after the Jaguars signed him off the Packers’ practice squad. Armstead has not played since Dec. 29, 2019.
Armstead, whom the Jaguars selected in the fifth round in 2019, had two stints on the COVID-19 reserve list in 2020. He was hospitalized once and later diagnosed with myocarditis, an inflammation of the heart muscle.
Myocarditis, a known complication of the virus, kept Armstead from working out for eight months.
The New Jersey native calls his return “a blessing.”
“I don’t really think about all that [I’ve been through],” Armstead said, via Michael DiRocco of ESPN. “It’s the past. When that happened, it was time to work. It took me probably two, three months to get back to where I live, where I am today and how I’m feeling. I’m just moving forward. I don’t dwell on the past; they’re all memories. I treat life like chess. That was a pawn. That was just a piece of my story. God’s got a greater story at the end.”
Armstead has 49 career touches for 252 yards and two touchdowns.
He will help replace Carlos Hyde, who went on injured reserve with a concussion, behind starter James Robinson.