Jacksonville Jaguars 1st-round pick Justin Blackmon missed significant time due to a holdout early in camp, so it should come as no surprise that he isn’t up to speed with the rest of the first unit. Mike Mularkey confirmed as much, saying ““He’s still a little bit behind the eight ball with some of the things: splits, depths, reads.” The Florida Times-Union is also reporting that Blackmon’s playing time may be limited in his first preseason game.
It’s been a rough offseason for Blackmon, so it’s baffling why his agent advised him to hold out. Holdouts have never been a good way for rookies to endear themselves to teammates and coaches, but the issue is compounded now that the wage scale is in place.
Houston Texans 1st-round pick Whitney Mercilus is currently listed as the backup weak-side linebacker, but after an impressive preseason debut and strong showings in practice, he’s pushing for a starting job already. “We’ll play him more and more with the first group to see how he does,” 
The Minnesota Vikings overhauled their secondary on draft day, and one of the key new additions is likely to debut in Friday’s preseason game. Josh Robinson, the Vikings 3rd round pick, missed nearly two weeks with a hamstring injury but is ready to make his presence felt.
