JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Defensive end Chris Clemons was the lone member of the Jacksonville Jaguars who did not report Thursday for the beginning of training camp.
Jaguars coach Gus Bradley said Clemons was dealing with some personal issues, but still said the veteran's absence was troubling. He also said he hopes the absence won't last more than a few days.
"I can't get too much into it," Bradley said. "I can tell you this: We've been in really good communication with him. If you were to ask me is it concerning I would say yeah. I told you that I would always be open as much as I can with you. This one's a little concerning.
"... My hope is that we can work through this, but [there has been] great communication. Just talked to him again this morning. Talked to him last night. So we'll see how it goes. Hopefully we come up with a decision to speed this up a little bit quicker. I don't foresee this as a situation where it's extended."
Paul Posluszny said he found out late Thursday morning that Clemons hadn't reported with the rest of the veterans. Not having him in camp would be a significant problem, according to the linebacker.
"Obviously he's a huge part of our defense," Posluszny said. "He really makes things go on that defensive line and he's a big part of our pass rush. He's a great teammate to have around, a veteran presence, leadership. He's been on outstanding defenses before so we want him here. We want him here. Whatever we need to do to get him here I think we're going to try.
"If he's not here, yes, that changes things for us because that's taking a starter out of the rotation. That's not good. We definitely need him here."
Clemons finished second on the team with 8.0 sacks last season, but three of those came against the Indianapolis Colts in Week 12. He had just one sack and seven tackles in the final five games.
Clemons did not participate in the Jaguars' nine organized team activities in the spring but did attend the mandatory three-day minicamp. On the first day of the minicamp, Clemons said his plan all along was to skip the voluntary offseason conditioning program and that he kept Bradley and defensive line coach Todd Wash in the loop.
Clemons also said he had a workout program to ensure that he would be in shape. That's the way he said he prefers to handle his offseason. He skipped most offseason workouts in Seattle and missed the first three OTAs with the Jaguars in 2014.