Jacksonville Jaguars

Jaguars, Colts, Let’s get it on!

// October 1st, 2010 // No Comments » // David Garrard, Derek Cox, Marcedes Lewis, Maurice Jones Drew, Mike Sims-Walker, Pocket Hercules

You can throw out the record books when the Colts and Jaguars get together, which they will do this Sunday afternoon in Jacksonville. Since the whooping Peyton Manning and the Colts put on the Jaguars on Monday night back in 2007, all 5 games have been within 7 points or less. The Colts are 4-1 in those games, but each one could have easily gone the other way. The Jaguars always seem to play their best games when Indianapolis comes to town.

Last season, the Colts won 2 hard fought games: 14-12 in Week 1, and 35-31 on a Thursday night in Week 15. How close was that Week 15 game? An NFL Record 9 lead changes throughout the game. They also won in Jacksonville a week after beating Denver.

Hmmm…

The Jaguars come off a giant let-down of a game last weekend, getting smacked around by the Eagles 28-3. Stud RB Maurice Jones-Drew was held to 88 yards on 22 carries, and only 1 receiving yard on 2 catches. I’m going to go out on a limb and say he’s going to have more receiving yards this week. David Garrard also struggled mightily, barely getting in positive numbers in ANPY/A, 0.25 / Attempt, worst in the league last week. It was the 2nd week in a row Garrard was pretty bad, as he got yanked, then put back into duty after an injury to Luke McCown, against the Chargers.

So how do the two teams match-up? Let’s take a look…

Some keys from the stats:

I don’t know about you, but every time the Colts play the Jaguars, I’m infuriated at the fact that the Jaguars convert 3rd down after 3rd down by 2 or less yards.  It’s like death by paper cuts.  Despite being pretty poor at Drive Success Rate (DSR), they are pretty good at the other drive-related stats: Time of Possession / Drive, First Downs / Drive, and Plays / Drive.  The quickest way to get Jacksonville out of the game is to get them off the field on 3rd Down.  Oh, and watch for the 6 yard hitch patterns on the outside on 3rd and 5.  I call it the Tim Jennings Special.

Watch the Red Zone Efficiency again this week.  The Jaguars haven’t been too good so far this young season on either side of the ball, while the Colts have been fantastic.

The best stat for the Jaguars this year?  Net Punting Average.  Their special teams look to be pretty good.  Let’s hope that get a lot more practice covering punts.

These numbers don’t take into account schedule played, which according to the Winning Stats, the Jaguars have played the toughest schedule so far this year (Colts are #17).  When you adjust for opponents, the Jaguars become much better statistically (Non-Adj: 27th Overall, Adj: 13th).

Other things to watch:

Injuries on the Offensive Line.  Jeff Linkenbach didn’t play too bad last week, but that might be slightly skewed because of just how bad both Mike Pollak and Jamie Richard played.  It’d be really nice if Charlie Johnson came back this week healthy.  He practiced fully on Wednesday, so that’s a great sign.

I think Jack Del Rio is coaching for his job on Sunday.  Another blow out loss will mean his team has pretty clearly quit on him, and he’ll need to be replaced immediately.  Maybe the Colts will let them hang around just enough to let Del Rio keep his job, at least until they come to Indianapolis in Week 15.

The Jaguars defense is very familiar with Manning, intercepting at least 1 pass in 6 of the last 7 meetings between the teams.  He’s been extremely careful with the ball so far this season, but there always seems to be a bad bounce that gets intercepted against Jacksonville.  I’m betting we’ll see one this week too.

Both Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis were bottled up pretty well last Sunday against the Broncos.  I haven’t had an opportunity to re-watch the game yet, so I’m not sure whether the Tackles were just really good, or whether they had lots of help.  More on that Friday.  Getting to Garrard on those 3rd down and mediums will be vital to the Colts success.

Prediction:

On paper, this doesn’t look like much of a game, as the Colts have significantly outperformed the Jaguars so far in 2010.  However, familiarity almost always wins out in this series, so I just can’t see a blowout.  Factor in that I think the Jaguars do care about their coach, so they’ll be playing hard to save his job.  I know most teams like to wait until the Bye week if they are going to fire their coach in-season, but that is still 5 weeks away, way too long in a league where every game matters.  I don’t see Del Rio making it much past next Tuesday, as the Colts will win handily, but certainly not easily.

Garrard’s three touchdown passes, equates to best passer rating and helped Jacksonville beat the Denver Broncos 24-17

// September 13th, 2010 // No Comments » // Aaron Kampman, Daryl Smith, David Garrard, Derek Cox, Marcedes Lewis, Mike Sims-Walker, Tebow

;JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — David Garrard played last season with “Draft Tebow” bumper stickers floating around town and No. 15 jerseys, the ones in teal and black, scattered in the stands.

They may have been a little threatening then.
They certainly don’t bother him now.

Garrard threw three touchdown passes, finished with his best passer rating and helped Jacksonville beat the Denver Broncos 24-17 on Sunday in a season opener the Jaguars called one of the most important in franchise history.
“This was big for us,” said tight end Marcedes Lewis, who caught two TD passes. “We really got some juice out of our squeeze.”
As for Tim Tebow? Well, the former Florida star made his NFL debut in his hometown and got rousing support. But he was a non-factor in the game.
The Broncos can’t say the same about Garrard, who completed 16 of 21 passes for 170 yards. His QB rating was 138.9, besting his previous high set in 2006.
“Everybody in this room believes in Dave and understands he’s our leader,” Lewis said. “This is big for him. It’s big for his confidence. If Dave is going to be great, then everyone else has to be great around him.”
Garrard got plenty of help.
Mike Thomas caught six passes for 89 yards. Maurice Jones-Drew ran for 98 yards. Adam Podlesh dropped two punts inside the 10-yard line. Tiquan Underwood returned a kickoff 53 yards that set up a field goal.
Maybe the most telling stat: Jacksonville, which ranked last in the league with 14 sacks last season, had three in the opener and hit Kyle Orton several other times.
“You get what you emphasize, usually,” said Aaron Kampman, the team’s biggest offseason acquisition who was involved in two sacks. “We have emphasized getting after the passer.”
Kampman kept the outing in perspective, pointing out that Denver played with two rookies (center J.D. Walton and right tackle Zane Beadles) on the offensive line and had All-Pro left tackle Ryan Clady starting five months after knee surgery.
“They had some guys who didn’t have a ton of experience in the league,” Kampman said. “But they’re still NFL players out there.”
The Jaguars, coming off a 7-9 season in which they blacked out nine of 10 home games, needed to get off to a good start to keep fans in the seats and eliminate more talk about relocation.
Tebow’s debut made a victory even more imperative, especially since some Jaguars fans clamored for the former University of Florida star.
The Broncos wasted little time getting Tebow on the field. The college football icon who grew up in Jacksonville entered on the third play. He gained a yard on a quarterback keeper. He returned two plays later and lined up at receiver. Tebow picked up another yard on his second carry, this one coming in the second quarter.
“It was a learning opportunity for me, an opportunity to get better,” Tebow said.
Tebow spent the rest of the game on the sideline. Orton was much more effective — at least until the fourth quarter.
Orton was 21 of 33 for 295 yards, with a touchdown and an interception. Orton’s fourth-down pass to Brandon Lloyd in the corner of the end zone was ruled incomplete with 4:41 remaining. Lloyd, who caught four passes for 106 yards, didn’t get two feet down.
“Made a lot of plays, but left a few out there,” Orton said. “We didn’t make enough plays and that’s unfortunate.”
The Broncos got the ball back with 1:50 left, but Daryl Smith stepped in front of Eddie Royal and picked off Orton’s pass near midfield.
Orton blamed some of the problems on static he was getting in his helmet, possibly the result of a thunderstorm that moved through Jacksonville and forced a 33-minute delay between the third and fourth quarters.
“Anytime you’re on the road in the NFL, you have to be prepared for that,” he said. “We put ourselves in the situation to win, but didn’t make the plays down the stretch.”
Denver might not have been behind had it not been for defensive end Ryan McBean’s two costly penalties. McBean was flagged twice for grabbing Jones-Drew’s face mask on the winning drive. The Jaguars used the extra 30 yards to move 83 yards in seven plays, capping the drive with Garrard’s 24-yard strike to Kassim Osgood.
It was Osgood’s first TD catch since 2004 — maybe the reason he celebrated so wildly.
Osgood was flagged for celebrating, a penalty that gave the Broncos good field position. Orton got them down to the Jacksonville 14, but his third-and-3 pass was tipped at the line of scrimmage and his fourth-down throw was a bit wide.
Garrard didn’t make the same mistakes.
“Those are the types of plays that we got to make all year,” he said.

Game notes
Jaguars CB Derek Cox was benched in the third quarter after getting beat several times. “Tough game for me,” he said. “Some days you’re on, and today I wasn’t on like I want to be.” … Jaguars won their season opener for the first time since 2006. … It was the hottest game in franchise history in Jacksonville. Temperatures reached 93 degrees with a heat index of 105. … Broncos CBs Champ Bailey and Andre Goodman held WR Mike Sims-Walker without a catch.
Copyright by STATS LLC and The Associated Press

Rashean wants one last good contract from the Jaguars, or anyone else who aren’t the Jaguars

// May 18th, 2010 // 2 Comments » // Derek Cox, Gene Smith, Rashean Mathis, jack del rio

So Rashean “The Team” Mathis wants to skip OTA’s over his contract. A contract that he has two years left on. As there isn’t a bigger Rashean fan than myself, this move is about as transparent as they come, and I don’t blame Rashean for a second.  Last year was the first year where we saw Rashean lose a step. The mere fact that Gene Smith spent a 2nd round pick last year to move up and grab Cornerback Derrick Cox wasn’t just because we needed another corner to complement Rashean, but Gene Smith knew we would need one to replace him a  few years down the road.

I’m DEFINITELY not writing Rashean off as being over the hill, I’m just saying time marches on. Time also Marches the fastest on Cornerbacks and Wide Receivers the former being especially true.

So why is Rashean balking? Mainly because he knows the only way he is going to get one last good contract is either to a) get one from the Jaguars, or b) get one from a team that isn’t the Jaguars. Regardless of which one he truly wants, he has a well earned contract with the Jaguars and nothing to lose except his trade or release, which likely would lead to a new contract.

That’s my two cents…

-Jimmy

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

http://www.bigcatcountry.com/2010/5/18/1477279/gene-smith-vs-rashean-mathis-why

-Collin Streetman

There is a crucial point that seems to getting lost in the shuffle of Mathis-gate. One of the reasons this is all occurring now, happens to be that Gene Smith has shown a heartless and cold attitude toward a number longtime Jaguars’ mainstays. Although this had to be done, the purge has definitely left those remaining realizing that they have to get paid now, because it may be their last season as a Jaguar. Henderson, Taylor, and Brian Williams were all do large paydays, and all were released without hesitation. This was the right play to make, but you have to know it has a lasting effect on those players who were “left behind”.

Could it be the way the Jaguars have been run as a team these last two years that has players scared for their jobs?

Gene Smith’s approach is the correct one to take, as he is clearly putting the organization above any individual player. However, this leaves the players thinking they must now look out for themselves, because the team is clearly not. Rashean Mathis may not be convinced that he’ll be here for the duration of his contract, albeit only 2 more seasons. Perhaps Gene will blink and cave to Rashean’s demands. Perhaps Mathis will voice his silent protest during OTA’s and show up ready to go at training camp.

Gene’s got all the power in this situation, and will want a positive precedent set against future players wanting to hold out. Gene is trying to run the organization as thriftily as possible, and one can’t blame him after all of the money wasted prior to his ascension to the top of the Jaguars food-chain. If Rashean gets anything, it will be from the good graces of Gene, and it won’t be much. However, don’t read into Jack Del Rio’s comment that Rashean won’t get a new deal. Jack has no power over personnel and is really playing outside his “sandbox”. Forget what the coach says, Gene’s got the Conn.

Rashean can’t be demonized or blamed for his behavior either. He’s been a top-flight corner and has been one of the best players on the defense next to Daryl Smith. His injuries have hurt his stock, and likely have him thinking that his shelf life is shortened. He’s got to be thinking that if he goes down again for a period, he’ll likely be cut and have to sign a “prove it” contract with another team for one year. Mathis wants his money now, and he deserves it… The question is, will it happen? Not likely.

Jacksonville Jaguars 2010 Draft > All Pass Rush, No over the top Safety crush.

// May 6th, 2010 // No Comments » // Coaching Staff, Derek Cox, Florida State University, NFL Draft, Rashean Mathis, Tickets

If you have read any of the coverage on this blog leading up to the draft, I talked alot about Safety and Cornerbacks. Rasheen is no spring chicken and Reggie Nelson is on his way to the place Jaguar #1 pick go, to go get cut from another another team.

Low and behold, we didn’t pick up any top line talent, let alone talent period to help the secondary. No Myron Rolle in the 6th Round? Sell some Jerseys and engage the beleaguered Florida State Fans NOT making weekly trips to Doak Campbell. You can’t tell me it wouldn’t have resulted in 50 jaguar season tickets due to waning interest in FSU football. Add concessions and $80 jerseys and I think he would have paid his own salary and you add a positive character guy, not to mention someone smarter than the teams Quarterback. How many teams can say they have a backup safety more intelligent than the head coach?

http://www.bigcatcountry.com/2010/5/6/1460403/2010-mini-camp-aftermath-the
by Alfie Crow

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.

As we all know, the saftey position on the Jacksonville Jaguars is a position of dire concern. Former first round pick Reggie Nelson took a nosedive in play after his rookie season and so far in camp hasn’t been any better. There were murmurs of the team trying to move him during the draft to no avail, and even a report earlier in the week about calling around and trying to peddle him now. Outside of Gerald Alexander who the Jaguars traded for last season, everyone else filling in at safety has left a lot to be desired.

Something interesting that did occur however, was at the cornerback position. Derek Cox, who was a 3rd round pick in 2009 that everyone questioned, got a lot of work at the left cornerback position, normally manned by veteran Rashean Mathis. “I thought it was because Rashean [Mathis] needed a blow,” Cox told Michael DiRocco of the Florida Times-Union. “I thought they were just doing a veteran move, letting him sit down and I was just taking the reps on the left side. I guess it’s worth giving it a shot.”

The move shouldn’t be unfamiliar to Cox if it occurs, as he played on the left side in high school and in college at William & Mary. “I like the left side, just because I’ve done it for so long. It’s comfortable for me.” If the move works into being permanent, does that mean Rashean Mathis is being phased out and over to the right side, or is something else in the works?

In 2003, Rashean Mathis was drafted in the second round as a free safety out of Bethune Cookman. He played all 16 games as a rookie, beginning his career at free safety and then moving to starting cornerback as the year went on. With the concern at safety and Cox working in on the left side, is it possible the Jacksonville Jaguars ask Rashean Mathis to make a move back to the safety position in the same way they did with former Jaguar Brian Williams a few seasons ago?

If you think about it, it makes a lot of sense. Mathis is 29 years old, he’ll turn 30 during the season. He’s getting to the point where he will be considered “older” for a cornerback. Mathis play hasn’t wained yet, but he has been hampered by injuries and hasn’t played a full 16 games since 2006. A move to free safety could not only add a real ball hawk in the backfield, but prolong his career. Mathis isn’t really known as a tackler, but at the safety position he can use his range and ball skills to play center field, like the Jaguars hoped Reggie Nelson would be able to do. A move from corner to safety isn’t an abnormal thing for older corners either, especially considering Rashean Mathis’ size (6′1″, 200lbs).

The big question if the move is made however, is who takes over at the right cornerback position that Derek Cox used to man? My first guess would be Tyron Brackenridge, who had a very good season last year starting 5 games as a fill-in corner and nickelback. Outside of Brackenridge, William MIddleton had a lot of work with the first team defense over the weekend. Then there is always the infamous pirated player, Don Carey. Carey had a decent weekend, but you can tell he’s getting his legs out from under him after a year out of football.

Jacksonville Jaguars Roster Rankings

// May 5th, 2010 // 1 Comment » // David Garrard, Derek Cox, ESPN, Gene Smith, Josh Scobee, Maurice Jones Drew, Mike Sims-Walker, Scouting

By Charlie Bernstein
Editor-In-Chief of JagNation.com
Posted May 5, 2010

http://buzztap.com/link.jsp?id=1478979&cid=26&source=feed

The first weekend of mini-camp is over and virtually no roster decisions will or have been made. That said, we will add to the baseless speculation upon what the final roster will look like as we rank the Jaguars current roster, 1-67 (we’ve omitted undrafted rookies).

We credit this story idea to ESPN Chicago columnist Michael Wright, who ran a similar column breaking down the Chicago Bears roster

1. Maurice Jones-Drew, RB
2. Daryl Smith, LB
3. Mike Sims-Walker, WR
4. Terrance Knighton, DT
5. Rashean Mathis, CB
6. Marcedes Lewis, TE
7. Eugene Monroe, OT
8. Aaron Kampman, DE
9. Tyson Alualu, DT
10. Derrick Harvey, DE

11. Derek Cox, CB
12. Justin Durant, LB
13. David Garrard, QB
14. Eben Britton, OT
15. Kirk Morrison, LB
16. Vince Manuwai, OG
17. Greg Jones, FB
18. Uche Nwaneri, OG
19. D’Anthony Smith, DT
20. Josh Scobee, K

21. Mike Thomas, WR
22. Kassim Osgood, WR
23. Reggie Hayward, DE
24. Luke McCown, QB
25. Tyron Brackenridge, CB
26. Gerald Alexander, S
27. Zach Miller, TE
28. Brad Meester, C
29. Larry Hart, OLB
30. Atiyyah Ellison, DT

31. Russell Allen, LB
32. Adam Podlesh, P
33. Jordan Black, OT
34. Rashad Jennings, RB
35. Freddy Keiaho, LB
36. Austin Lane, DE
37. Kynan Forney, OG
38. Montell Owens, FB
39. Ernest Wilford, TE
40. Reggie Nelson, S

41. Jarett Dillard, WR
42. Scott Starks, CB
43. Anthony Smith, S
44. Jeremy Mincey, DE
45. Cameron Stephenson, OL
46. Jeremy Cain, LS
47. Sean Considine, S
48. Nate Hughes, WR
49. Deji Karim, RB
50. Don Carey, CB

51. William Middleton, CB
52. Brock Bolen, FB
53. Scotty McGee, RS
54. Julius Williams, DE
55. Jeremy Navarre, DE
56. Cecil Newton, C
57. Courtney Greene, S
58. Walter Curry, DL
59. Zach Potter, TE
60. Tiquan Underwood, WR

61. Michael Coe, CB
62. Chris Harrington, DE
63. Paul McQuistan, OL
64. Andrew Crummey, OL
65. Allen Patrick, RB
66. Bryan Smith, LB*

Jacksonville Jaguars NFL Draft 2010 > CJ Spiller from First Coast News High School Football

// April 14th, 2010 // No Comments » // College Football, Derek Cox, Maurice Jones Drew, NFL Draft, Pocket Hercules, Scouting, Senior Bowl

Local product CJ Spiller would take the pressure off Pocket Hercules

There has been alot of talk about the Jaguars drafting CJ Spiller as some trades further up the draft board have allowed him to “possibly” slip to Jacksonville at #10. My personal feeling is while he would be a wicked addition as a One-Two punch with our beloved Pocket Hercules, The Geek thinks it’s all a smoke screen to garner trade bait to reclaim the second round pick we gave up for Derrick Cox last year.

If the Jacksonville Jaguars did take our hometown boy, i still think it would be a very, very good pick as the last time we had two #1 tailbacks, we got to the Championship game.

After watching some combine tape, I’m a fan of Jason Pierre Paul of USF. We need better coverage and or a better pass rush.

Here is the breakdown of CJ Spiller …

C.J. Spiller Scouting Report by Matt Horkman

Pros: Explosive player that is a threat to score every time he touches the ball. Versatile. Will contribute as a runner, receiver and return man.
Cons: Can he run between the tackles? Probably not a true workhorse back. Doesn’t have great size.
Overall: Playmaker with a ton of talent. The true definition of an all-purpose player. Just as big as a threat as a receiver/return man as he is in the backfield. However, he isn’t Chris Johnson 2.0, but will still be very enticing to teams picking in the top half of round one.