Don't expect Maurice Jones-Drew to show up at Jacksonville Jaguars training camp any time soon.
Citing a source familiar with the situation, ESPN's Adam Schefter reported Thursday that Jones-Drew's holdout is expected to last at least until the end of the month and could head into September.
Both sides remain in constant contact, according to Schefter, with the talks being described as cordial. Jones-Drew wants a new contract, despite having two years left on a five-year, $30.95 million deal he signed in 2009.
NFL Network's Heath Evans created a stir Tuesday night, when he said first-year Jaguars coach Mike Mularkey was "distancing himself from his players" by not communicating with Jones-Drew during his holdout. But Mularkey shot down the theory Thursday, calling it "comical."
"You can't overreact to anything being said," Mularkey told The Florida Times-Union. "That (national criticism) happens everywhere. You can't be influenced by what's said."
Offensive lineman Eben Britton also found Evans' comments amusing.
"That's kind of hilarious," Britton said. "That's just the opposite of what's happening. It really feels like a professional football organization from top to bottom. I've never been part of a team that's so acutely attentive to details."
Mularkey has a job to do. Right now, Jones-Drew has nothing to do with it.
