Unbelievable Draft Success!

Extremely pleased with the draft that Dave Caldwell and his staff put together this past weekend. The Jaguars upgraded the defense in a major way, adding quality talent in particular at linebacker (Myles Jack) and in the secondary. That guy above, Jalen Ramsey, is a serious athlete. He tested off the charts in the vertical, the 40-yard dash, and with his lifting. He's an explosive player with a lot of versatility.

With the Jags adding Jackson, Gipson, and Amukamura in free agency, that side of the ball should be much improved. Add back in a healthy Marks and this team can make quantum leaps forward. Heck, if they improve on third down alone they'll win three more games. 

I'm excited about the future. Time to get those season tickets...

Football Time in Northeast Florida

It's August 1...


There are Pop Warner teams running wind sprints over at Ed Austin Park. 


The local college squads are taking physicals and running in groups--the freshman checking into their dorms before carrying the vets' equipment out to the practice fields. 


The Jaguars have been in camp now for a week. They're practicing in full pads and scrimmaging on Friday. Hell, they play a preseason game in ten days!


And yet, Maurice Jones-Drew hasn't even met Jacksonville's new head coach yet. Nope. He hasn't even taken the time to shake Coach Mularkey's hand (this according to Dan Hicken of Sports Final Radio). He skipped OTAs with the team. He hasn't spoken with our management.


He wants more money, but he didn't complain when he signed his name on that contract and made millions in guaranteed cash on his last contract. This was back before he had ever rushed for 1,000 yards. This was back when GM Gene Smith went to his camp and tore up his rookie deal, rewarding him well in advance of things he never showed he could do. He has two years left on his deal.


Two years!


So now he sits out, getting fined $30,000 each day, and his offensive line is practicing for five hours daily in the Northeast Florida heat. They're busting their asses in preparation to block for a guy that has a problem honoring his contract!


I mean, Maurice, c'mon! Why did you even sign it if you didn't think you could play it out?


He's a great player. He has the heart of a lion on the field. He's not the tallest back in the league, which is why he fell into the second round as a rookie, but he's performed well all the same. Still, his achievements in no way preclude him from meeting our coach, honoring the deal he signed, helping a second-year quarterback take a leadership role on the team and helping the Jaguars get back into the playoffs. This hold-out shows a serious deficit in character. 


If Maurice had played poorly last year (he didn't catch many balls, and he had more drops than I've ever seen him when Blaine did find him out of the backfield), would he have given money back to the team? I doubt it. I didn't hear anything about Marcedes Lewis doing that, and he was one of the very worst players in the NFL at his position last year.


Will Maurice get paid? Sure doesn't sound like it. In fact, I think the Jags may actually make him pay his holdout fines (many teams waive those fines when a new deal gets done, or the player shows up to camp).


So what happens now? Maurice is set in his ways. He plays his football in Duval County, but he lives in California. He doesn't care that much about Northeast Florida or the fans here, and he wouldn't even be here if the Jags hadn't taken a chance on him in the second round. He would never come here as a free agent--would never choose to make his home here, like Jimmy Smith, Mark Brunell and Tony Boselli have.


He's also very prideful. It wouldn't surprise me to see him miss all four preseason games. Would he sit out week one against the Vikings?


Well shoot, he might have no say in it. While he's at home, Rashad Jennings is kicking ass out there. Rashad can run it. He's an upright back that has averaged more than five yards a carry in limited touches over his career. He's in the best shape of his life (according to him; I heard him interviewed on the Frank Frangie show about a month ago) after a minor knee injury last year (he said he could have played late in the season if it were allowed) and he's primed to break out. Rashad is a glider. He catches the ball well and, at 235 pounds, he can pick up the blitz. 


Maurice might get Wally Pipped if he keeps this nonsense up.


But hey, at least he'll have a comfortable seat on his couch out there in California over the next two years from which to watch Jennings tote the rock... 

Jags at the 1/4 point...

After a 23-10 loss to the New Orleans Saints at home here in Jacksonville, this team is struggling to find an identity and, to be honest, beginning the countdown to the next high draft choice.

That's not at all to say the season is fruitless, or that this team won't be interesting. But I think, after Houston's play in the last two weeks, we can kiss the division goodbye and this team just isn't good enough to contend for a wild card in the AFC. Not with Buffalo and Tennessee starting to play some good football.

Blaine went 16-42 yesterday. It's the type of line that gets you booed off the field, especially after missing twelve throws in a row in the second half. But the thing is, Blaine looked really good in spots. My oh my, he looks the part! He's a big kid, and he stood in the pocket, didn't get rattled, and he made some excellent throws. That pass to Zach Miller on the touchdown was a freaking dart!

He had some bad misses, and his team didn't help him out (I counted at least three drops). He didn't play great, but he spun his head and went through the old progression tree. I love to see that, as those are the hallmarks of guys like Philip Rivers and Tom Brady.

The defense has been pretty good. Paul Posluzny was a great addition, and I think Dwight Lowery and Drew Coleman have been nice additions.

Maurice Jones-Drew is still running like a man possessed. Miller and Lewis, when healthy, are very good tight ends.

The cupboard is not bare, and this team is very competitive.

This team will be okay, and it needs to grow. I want to win a bunch more games this year, but if Blaine continues to make strides and we end up with a play like Justin Blackmon in the next NFL draft? Whooh! We could be getting back to the days of Brunell to Smith and McCardell around here...