FanPost

The Eben Britton Pick

From the moment we chose Monroe in the draft, I was ecstatic about the pick. When we picked Eben Britton in the draft, I was a little dismayed and confused because there were an allotment of players I would have picked instead of him (Everette Brown being one of them); partly because of Tra Thomas' and Pashos's contracts and the obvious newcomer in Monroe just one round earlier. Then I remembered the concept of BAP and I started thinking about all of the offensive line possibilities that would stem into production for the rest of the offense and the pick began to grow on me. Then I read and heard about Britton's comments that can be found on Jaguars.com: "

“I couldn’t be happier. Every team that passed on me is going to regret it,” he said. “I’m going to work my (butt) off to be a Jacksonville Jaguar,” Britton said.

He spoke of having a chip on his shoulder since his youth, the result of divorce and subsequently moving from New York to Los Angeles.

“When that first game comes, somebody is going to pay for it,” Britton said. “People told me I wasn’t big enough, I wasn’t strong enough. That all ends today.”

At 6-5, 317, Britton has certainly grown to be big enough and his career goals are even bigger.

“There’s nobody in this draft that has a bigger heart than I do. I’m so fired up to be a Jacksonville Jaguar you can’t even believe it.” "

Despite all of that I have to admit, I was still skeptical of the pick, then I read this scouting report on him: http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/players/556821

My favorite parts were: "Follett, who was annoying Arizona linemen for his dirty tactics on the field, grabbed Britton's face mask and tried to rip off the tackle's helmet, falling off the lineman to land on Tuitama for an 8-yard sack on the Wildcats' next drive. Follett then got up and starting jawing with Britton, but the left tackle shoved the line-backer to the ground, as Follett went scurrying like a little snake to the sidelines."

Yeah he was later penalized, but that was acceptable, because he's only been penalized 4 times in and amazing 2,461 snaps.

Here's the best part: "Later in the game, Follett was again caught ripping the helmet off Arizona offensive lineman Colin Baxter, but the refs stepped in before a brawl could escalate. The rest of the day, Follett would have a "bulls eye" on his chest, as the left tackle refused to let his opponent initiate any more "less than ethical" performance on the field … Midway through the third quarter, Britton hit Follett with such force, that the linebacker fell into his own teammate, defensive end Tyson Alvalu, letting Antolin cut back against the grain and break free around the right corner for a 59-yard scamper to the Cal 3. Two plays later, Britton led the offensive linemen in unision, shoving the Bears into the end zone, as Antolin scored his third touch-down for the game on a 1-yard run to conclude a 77-yard, 7-play drive … Antolin would follow Britton on a 9-yard run, as Follett was again flattened by the left tackle on the play. He then latched on to Follett and defensive end Cameron Jordan to protect Tuitama's blind side on the QB's 35-yard touchdown toss to Rob Gronkowski that completed a 6-play, 59-yard late third quarter possession"

This is exactly what the Jaguars needed last year, someone that could fight through some adversity and then finishing up strong (blocking two people at the same time) while also sticking up for the rest of the team. And now we have it.

If you're worried about what he can do on the field physically, just read the rest of the report, it's pretty impressive.

Now I'm honestly happy about the pick.

 

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