How the National Media Views the Jacksonville Jaguars
// June 14th, 2010 // No Comments » // Aaron Kampman, Coaching Staff, David Garrard, Maurice Jones Drew, Mike Sims-Walker, NFL Draft, Playoffs??? Playoffs!!!?, Rashean Mathis, Thanks Wayne Weaver, jack del rio
Why Your Team Won’t Win the Super Bowl: Jacksonville Jaguars Edition.
Nick Signorelli by
Nick Signorelli
Senior Writer Written on June 13, 2010
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/405022-why-your-team-wont-win-the-super-bowl?search_query=jaguars%20why
No, I am not picking on just the Jacksonville Jaguars! This is a series that I am doing for all 32 of the NFL teams, Why Your Team Won’t Win The Super Bowl.
To me, the Jacksonville Jaguars are one of the strangest teams to figure out. During the NFL’s last expansion, instead of putting a team in the second largest market in America, LA, the powers that be decided to put the franchise in Jacksonville, Florida.
The Jaguars have had numerous problems selling out home games, and have had many games blacked out,for lack of ticket sales.
They have even had games where they would section off parts of the stadium so that people would not see the empty seats.
In my opinion, forget about all the talk about the Rams or the Vikings moving to Los Angeles when their leases are up at their current buildings. In my opinion, it is going to be the Jaguars.
This is not to disrespect the fans of Jacksonville in any way. I actually feel sorry for any city that loses their team. But I honestly believe from the top down the Jaguars are looking to make a change.
For starters this offseason we had the verbal spatting between head coach Jack Del Rio and owner Wayne Weaver over Del Rio’s interest in coaching the USC Trojans when Pete Carroll left to coach the Seahawks.
Del Rio is a former player and coach at USC, and I would be willing to bet the mortgage that the powers that be at USC would have taken Del Rio over Lane Kiffin in a second.
Del Rio has been the Jaguars second coach, only to Tom Coughlin, since the inception of the Jaguars in 1995.
He has made some curious decisions, such as allowing Byron Leftwich to walk out the door and to hand the reigns of the franchise to David Garrard.
Garrard is a decent player, but has yet to prove that he is any where near good enough to lead the Jaguars into the future successfully. And Jacksonville has done nothing to bring in competition for him, or address the situation in the draft.
The defensive line has struggled, even though Aaron Kampman was brought in to help the younger players.
Maurice Jones-Drew and Mike Sims-Walker are two potential superstars, but without a quality offensive line or quarterback, neither one’s skills will reach full potential as long as they are in Jacksonville.
Though there are some bright spots for the Jaguars, there are just too many holes for this team to make a serious run at the Lombardi this year.
My prediction: 5-11, last place in the AFC South.
One of the areas for concern all off-season and during mini-camp was the safety position. Many people aren’t concerned with the cornerback position all that much, but should they? Some interesting happenings occurred during mini-camp weekend that could potentially be foreshadowing.
Gary Kubiak was hired ahead of Rick Smith in 2006, so it was a coach endorsing a general manager as opposed to the more traditional way around. They both have roots in Mike Shanahan’s Denver regime and the compatibility from their long relationship makes for a decision-by-consensus environment as opposed to a big division-of-power setup. Smith’s got a large scouting staff — some argue too large — but resources are not an issue for a first-class organization where owner Bob McNair spends what is needed to produce the best chances at success.
Team president Bill Polian has an excellent track record as a talent-finder and his team is built almost exclusively through the draft, a formula that’s worked for a team that’s consistently won double-digit games during his tenure. He trusts his scouts and the team’s systems, which are evolving under Jim Caldwell as he heads into his second year as coach. Polian has a shrewd feel for who’s overvalued and who’s undervalued and for what will be available when. He also knows he’ll be able to fill some roster spots with undrafted rookies ideal for what the Colts do. Owner Jim Irsay has full faith in Polian’s record and résumé.
General manager Gene Smith has control over the draft and the roster. But having come up as a scout and with an early background in coaching, he knows the value of input from people he trusts. Jack Del Rio is no shrinking violet, and his strong opinions are certainly factored in as Smith hits on the popular “consensus” model. Owner Wayne Weaver is looking to be more involved as the Jaguars press to sell tickets and get into the playoff picture. But those who think that means he’ll be moving name cards on draft day are overreaching.
Jeff Fisher has never sought to be a coach/GM but his power in personnel decisions certainly increased a few years ago when Floyd Reese was dumped and Mike Reinfeldt was hired. The Titans talk constantly about consensus. Reinfeldt controls a well-organized scouting staff and measures input from Fisher’s staff as well. Then the two ultimately come to an agreement. It seems to me Fisher is far less likely to wind up with a player he doesn’t want than Reinfeldt is to call a name that might not be his first choice at a specific slot. While Bud Adams made the call on 
Joe Cullen, who made headlines for passing through a fast food drive-thru naked in 2006 when he was a Detroit Lions assistant, could soon be back in the league with the Jacksonville Jaguars.