Injury Sidelines Jags' Brunell

Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Mark Brunell is out indefinitely with a high ankle sprain and will miss at least Sunday's game against Tennessee.

Brunell left Sunday's 37-22 victory over the Detroit Lions after only two plays with a high sprain of the left ankle. He underwent a battery of medical tests and will be in a cast and on crutches for at least the next few days.

"The injury has been determined but the extent of which has not," Jaguars coach Tom Coughlin said today. "It is our hope that he will come around faster than some of the other guys we have had around here."

Coughlin said that fourth-year quarterback Jamie Martin will make the start Sunday and will take the starter's percentage of the snaps this week in practice.

On Brunell's first pass attempt, Detroit Lions defensive end Robert Porcher beat backup right tackle Ben Coleman and hit Brunell as he threw. Brunell rolled on his left ankle and had to be helped off the field. X-rays were negative, revealing no fracture.

Martin, who was sacked on his first pass attempt, bounced back on Jacksonville's second possession to throw a 67-yard touchdown pass to Keenan McCardell.

Mark Brunell injured his ankle on a hit by Robert Porcher on the second play of the game. (AP)

Martin had completed just 6-of-11 passes for 56 yards in two games before Sunday, but led the Jaguars to their sixth straight home win. He went 15-of-23 for 228 yards and two touchdowns without an interception.

Coleman, a six-year veteran, started because All-Pro right tackle Tony Boselli was inactive after sufferina sprained ankle last week at Cincinnati.

Brunell overcame a strained groin muscle last month to lead Jacksonville to a 29-24 victory over Tampa Bay on Nov. 15. The Jaguars (10-3), who lead the AFC Central by three games over the Pittsburgh Steelers, nearly wrapped up the division title but still have not clinched a playoff berth.

The 28-year-old Brunell, a two-time Pro Bowler, led the AFC in passing in 1997 and ranks third in the conference this season. He has completed 59 percent of his passes (208-of-354) for 2,601 yards and 20 touchdowns with nine interceptions.

Despite suffering a torn medial collateral ligament and a partially torn posterior cruciate ligament in the second preseason game in 1997, Brunell returned after missing just two regular-season games. He completed 61 percent of his passes (264-of-435) for 3,281 yards and 18 touchdowns with seven interceptions.

In 1996, Brunell led the NFL with 4,367 passing yards as the Jaguars reached the AFC Championship Game in just their second year.

They acquired Brunell from Green Bay for third- and fifth-round picks in the 1995 draft. He was rewarded with a five-year, $30.5 million contract before the 1997 season.

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