Jacksonville Jaguars
Changing Times
By: Buck Blanz
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
Change is coming in Jacksonville and it’s coming fast.
After concluding the 2020 NFL season with a horrendous record of 1-15 (earning them the first overall pick) the Jaguars have quite a bit of soul searching to do.
The Jaguars are looking to hire a new General Manager as well as Head Coach, and with the number one pick most people are looking at this offseason as one of the most important offseasons in franchise history.
The first two items on the list for the Jaguars this offseason is to find a Head Coach and General Manager, but not in a rush.
Jacksonville has been given an extremely unique opportunity to gut the franchise and rebuild to a talented roster all in the same offseason.
While it is a unique opportunity for Jacksonville, that doesn’t mean it isn’t a tall task. Ideally, the Jaguars would like to look for candidates that will be able to engage with the young talent within the franchise getting them to buy in, in order to create a winning culture.
The Jaguars met with former Ohio State and University of Florida Head Coach Urban Meyer about the Head coaching position. Meyer has since begun to put together a coaching staff in case he is able to get the job.
If the Jaguars do decide to go with Meyer, the Jacksonville fans as well as Meyer are going to have to deal with a few changes.
Meyer would come out of college having won three National Championships and a record of 187-32 as a college coach, which is incredible. However, in the NFL a three loss season is terrific where at Ohio State he might’ve been fired after three losses in a season, so both the fans of Urban Meyer and Meyer himself will have to be ready to handle some tough losses.
Also, throughout Meyer’s coaching career he has been one of the best recruiters, but that won’t transfer to the NFL very well, Jaguars fans will quickly be able to see how Meyer is able to develop the talent given.
All-in-all, whoever is able to get the Head Coaching job for Jacksonville next year is faced with turning around the worst record in franchise history.
The Jaguars are looking for leadership throughout the offseason, the franchise needs a clear vision and a plan of action for the franchise to get back on track.
For many fans, getting back on track would mean executing with their first overall pick this year.
Having said that, the Jaguars don’t have a good track record in recent years with quarterbacks, Jacksonville has passed on two marquee picks in Deshaun Watson and Patrick Mahomes.
With the Jaguars getting their first number one pick in franchise history this upcoming draft they are looking to capitalize on it, helping change the culture.
However, fans will get more insight as to how Jacksonville will use their first overall pick after they find a General Manager and Head Coach.
Jacksonville is looking to greatly improve their status heading into the 2021 season and hoping to compete in another AFC title game in the near future.
Southern Charm
By: Kenneth Harrison
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
Week 11 of the NFL season is in the books.
The contenders are starting to rise to the top and separate themselves at this point.
Let’s take a look at the AFC South and grade the teams thus far.
Jacksonville: The Jaguars (1-9) have the second worst record in the league behind the winless New York Jets.
The lone win came in the season opener, so they’ve lost nine consecutive games.
Quarterback Gardner Minshew fractured his right thumb in Week 7 against the Chargers.
Jake Luton has been playing since then and he’s struggled. In his last two games he’s 34 of 72 passes for 320 yards, 1 touchdown and 5 interceptions.
Minshew may return next week against Cleveland. One bright spot has been rookie running back James Robinson. He’s rushed for 762 yards (3rd) and 5 touchdowns.
The Jags are 27th in total offense and 30th in total defense.
The best thing they have going for them is they can possibly land the top pick in the draft. At this pace they should pick no worse than second. Grade: F.
Indianapolis: The Colts (7-3) are tied for the division lead.
Veteran QB Philip Rivers is in his first season in Indy.
He has a problem turning the ball over and he has thrown 8 interceptions up to this point.
They don’t have a big-time playmaker on offense. The Colts have a couple of talented backs in Nyheim Hines and Jonathan Taylor.
They are coming off of a good overtime win against Green Bay Sunday.
The defense is elite, ranked second in total defense. They allow less than 300 yards per game and 21 points per game.
The offense isn’t bad, ranking 13th in total offense. This team is a contender because they have a great defense that can keep them in any game. Grade: B+.
Houston: The Texans (3-7) fired head coach Bill O’Brien after an 0-4 start.
He also traded All-Pro receiver DeAndre Hopkins to the Arizona Cardinals in the offseason.
Quarterback Deshaun Watson is a very good young quarterback, but he does not have much to work with. Wide receiver Will Fuller V has over 700 receiving yards and Brandon Cooks has 634.
Houston is 18th in total offense and defense.
They are 2 – 1 in their last three games. The one loss was 10-7 to the Browns. They can realistically win half of their final six games that include Detroit, Chicago and Cincinnati.
They are not going to make the playoffs so that might be pointless. Grade: D.
Tennessee: The Titans (7-3) look like they are picking up where they left off last season.
They play old school football by running the ball and controlling the clock.
Running back Derrick Henry leads the league in carries (229), rushing yards (1,079) and he has 3 rushing TD’s (3rd).
QB Ryan Tannehill is good enough to make plays when the run game isn’t working. He’s thrown for 22 touchdowns; 4 picks and he’s completing 71% of his passes.
They just beat the Ravens in overtime, so they play well against good teams.
They did lose to Indy 34-17 two weeks ago. They play again this week and they cannot afford to get swept. Grade: B.
The Good Ole Days
By: JJ Lanier
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
It’s hard to believe a quarter century has passed since the Carolina Panthers in Jacksonville Jaguars played their first NFL games.
I remember watching Carolina play Tampa Bay at Clemson with my grandfather and father because the stadium in Charlotte wasn’t completed yet.
I also remember all the arguments and debates going on about how you actually pronounce Jaguars; was it “Jag-wires” or “Jag-u-wars”? Speaking of which, how nice would it be if the biggest issue in sports today revolved around the pronunciation of a team’s nickname?
Even though I was only fifteen during their inaugural season and was more interested in playing sports than watching them, the one thing that always sticks out in my mind was how neither team really felt like your typical expansion team.
For instance, take a look at Jacksonville’s first five seasons; after struggling a bit their first year in the league (4-12) they made the playoffs four straight years.
Two of those years, 1996 and 1999, culminated in an appearance in the AFC Championship game.
There aren’t too many teams that can claim to make it to their conference championship game in only their second year in existence (hold onto that thought for just a minute).
As for the ‘99 season, a little bit of bar trivia for if/when we ever get to do those types of things again- Jacksonville only lost three games that entire season, all to the Tennessee Titans.
It’s almost as if that year’s Titans team was to Jacksonville like Alabama has been to Georgia recently. (Cheap shot towards Georgia fans? Yes. Unnecessary cheap shot towards Georgia fans? Absolutely.)
As for the Panthers, well, you probably remember or have at least figured out they too made the playoffs, as well as the NFC Championship game in their second season.
After a very respectable 7-9 record their first year, they won their division (the NFC West, which consisted of more teams east of the Mississippi River than west) with a 12-4 record and of course, the conference championship game, as I mentioned.
The Panthers success wasn’t as consistent during those first few years as the Jaguars- they didn’t experience another winning season until 2002- but they have had the advantage over the last decade and a half, and overall.
Since the ‘95 season, Carolina has had more wins (204-183), playoff appearances (8-7) and Super Bowl appearances (2-0), than Jacksonville.
I’m going to stop any more comparisons between the teams because that really wasn’t my intention when I started writing this.
Rather, I wanted to talk about, and give credit to, what both teams were able to achieve at the start.
Like basically all expansion teams, both rosters were full of players other teams didn’t want and rookies, being coached in this case by two first time head coaches- Tom Coughlin and Dom Capers.
It showed that with the right coaching and atmosphere players can perform at levels other teams didn’t recognize or just overlooked.
In a strange way it also helped contribute to today’s way of thinking, where if a coach can’t win within the first year or two, he’s gone.
I mean, if two expansion teams can make a conference championship in both of their second seasons, anyone should be able to, right?
Neither team may have had the overall success they were looking for 25 years ago, but they’ve exceeded most expectations, no matter where they called home, or how you pronounced their name.
Tanking For Trevor
By: Robert Craft
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
The NFL season is scheduled to kickoff next week.
Thirty-one teams cut down their rosters to field the best team for the 2020 season. The Jacksonville Jaguars are doing the opposite.
The Jaguars traded their best defensive player in Yannick Ngakoue and on Monday they released their best offensive player Leonard Fournette (who was the fourth overall draft pick in 2017).
Dave Caldwell is in his eighth year as the general manager of the Jaguars. Caldwell has drafted six Pro Bowl players during his tenure with the Jags, including DE Josh Allen and DJ Chark Jr.
Let’s look at Caldwell first round draft choices:
2012: Justin Blackmon (suspended for substance abuse, has not played since 2013
2013: Luke Joeckel no longer in the league last played with Seahawks 2017
2014: Blake Bortles cut after five seasons; currently a free agent
2015: Dante Fowler Jr traded to the Rams in 2018; now with the Falcons
2016: Jalen Ramsey traded to the Rams in 2019
2017: Leonard Fournette released after three seasons
Just three short years ago in 2017, the Jags were ten minutes away from the Super Bowl but Tom Brady comeback ended those Jags’ dreams.
Caldwell had the NFL world by the tail, with an AFC Championship Game and a team loaded with young talent on both sides of the ball.
Jag fans, Dave Caldwell isn’t going anywhere, his job is not at risk. After unloading Calais Campbell, AJ Bouye, Marcell Dareus, Yannick Ngakoue and Leonard Fournette, it is clear that the Jags are in complete rebuild mode.
Since Shad Khan bought the team the Jags are 38-90. Do you think Jerry Jones or Robert Kraft would allow this? HELL NO, they would clean house!
The direction of this franchise comes straight from the top. If it was a playoffs or bust directive from Khan after the 2019 end of season, Caldwell would be addressing the team’s needs. Instead, he is gaining draft capital and salary cap relief.
Let’s look at the brightside, Caldwell is one of the best talent evaluators in the business. The Jaguars are stockpiling 2021 draft picks. They currently have 11, including four in the first two rounds.
With the Jags projected to win three or four games, they should be in perfect position to draft a franchise quarterback. Clemson’s Trevor Lawrence and Ohio State’s Justin Fields could be the quarterback the Jags have been searching for since Mark Brunell.
Also, Caldwell deserves credit for putting together the 2017 team that went 10-6. He either drafted or signed six defensive players who made the Pro Bowl or were All-Pro that season.
It is hard to win in the NFL when a team loses so much talent and doesn’t replace it. The Jag’s are on the “Tanking for Trevor” train. This team will be lucky to win 3 games in 2020.
The Jaguars have 11 picks in the 2021 draft.
