An offseason outlook

right, so comletely bypass the deepest position in the draft, when the position is also one of need. this draft might be the best qb draft ever, and it so happens garrard is aight and is aging. so not drafting QB at all is proposterous! I do agree given who is likely to be there at 16, first round QB is not the best option.

probably wants a good amount of money, and he was inconsistent, i say let him go, Jason Hill is emerging, he’s like Troy Williamson coming in, but he’s not going to fail, Jason Hill can play #2 for us, he was trash from the 49ers, and he’s treasure for the jaguars, he’s got good speed, pretty good hands, he dropped 1 ball since being here, Dillard will hopefully not get hurt this year.

pay MSW. in games without him the passing game really struggled. If anything he draws coverage away. Secondly with enough holes on this team already why make another hole

I agree with you in that MJD is one of the most dominant backs in the NFL. I also agree with you that DG is still “capable”. Those 2 points is where I believe your piece falls apart. There is IMO NO WAY we take a receiver in the 1st round of the draft. GMG will take BAP, and after seeing the list of receivers returning for their next seasons. I dont see how it is possible any of the leftovers are worthy of #16. Not only that, but i dont believe this teams offensive prowess is a receiver away. Receivers dont buy a QB time to throw. Receivers dont open holes for the RB to run through. I for one noticed the OL fall apart bit by bit after the midway point of the season. Be it injuries, age, cohesion, or just the fact that this OL is built for the run. And not so much for the pass. The glaring issue to me. That will take this O to the next level. Lies with the big boys lining up in front of DG and MJD. I think we have a good OL, and i think we have a couple great OL pieces. That being Eugene, and Vinny. Brad has been a great C, but his time is coming to an end. I just think we are least a player or 2 away on the OL, to have that dominant O. Marcades Lewis had a fantastic year, but appeared to be under utilized in the passing game. He mostly was used for max pass protection, and run blocking. a more dominant right side of the OL. Would free him up to help more downfiled. Not to mention take an LB out of the box allowing us to run better. I look at the Pats, and Tom Brady. He doesnt have great receivers, and for the most part didnt initially have a running game. That team managed to still throw it all over the place. Not to mention the running game took off. There is no dominant receiver on that team. Now im not comparing DG to TB at any level. Im pointing out the difference in the OL being more the key than the receivers. We have enough talent in the reeceiving crew at this point to NOT take one in the 1st round. For that matter to take one in the first few rounds. That is with or without MSW. Im all for re-signing him, but it has to be reasonable. I think his deal will hinge on the CBA, and when free agency begins. J. Black and G. Whimper are not gonna get us to the next level. Im not sure they are competent BU’s at this point. Id love to see Eben move back to right guard, and have us draft/FA a true RT. I know we have some guys in training..ie Estes and uche for C. Im not sure if Smiley got enough shoulder rest this season or not. He certainly should have. So id like to see a RT, G, and possibly a C brough in. IMO this should happen way before receiver. I believe in GMG’s mantra..BIG BODIES in the 1st round’s…sorry that was long and a little rambled..might need to expound and do it as a fan post..lol

you’re right receivers don’t generally open up more time to throw.. that responsibility usually falls on the offensive line tight end or fullback, with some receiver blocking at times. You’re missing the point I was making. This team is far closer to being a dominant offensive power than they are to be a defensive powerhouse.. Why address a big issue by drafting secondary, when you have such high expectations for the season and are so many pieces away from fixing that part of your game. The offensive game is a piece or two away from being dominant. #1 priority is finding weapons that give MJD a little more space to work with. He’s your star player, he’s the guy you’re going to put the ball in his hands to make the big plays. And all I’m saying is far too easy to defend a team with so few offensive weapons. Garrard is inconsistent yes, but like I said Del Rio hit it right on when he said we need to bring in someone to challenge Garrard at the QB position. Maybe it is a deep draft at QB, but if you’ve looked at team’s needs ahead of us, we’re not going to get the QB that anyone wants. Making quick drastic decisions to just take a QB because it seems like a quick fix, could very well result in bad decisions. This team’s strength is it’s ability to move the ball on the ground. I think this team needs a quarterback who can be versatile on his feet along with passing abilities. Look at the kid from Hawaii this year, that rushed for over 1700 yards on the ground at QB. It’s just an example (not saying we need a QB with ridiculous rush capabilities) but if I’m drafting a quarterback that’s what I’m looking for. A player who can play to our teams strengths.
      I think we hold out on drafting a QB though, unless we can get a gem later into the draft. Otherwise, free agents are pretty slim at the QB position but I do see a fair number of decent backups who have shown shimmers of light now and then. We gotta be able to do better at bringing someone in better than a McCown, Bouman, or Edwards. Those aren’t guys that can challenge and push a #1 QB. The only way I see drafting a QB is if the Jags get hungry on free agency and bring in say a Vincent Jackson, or maybe a Sidney Rice. Very unlikely though.
     I continuously notice people bring up names like Dillard, Hill, Osgood, or Miller. I’m a huge Jags fan too guys but I’m also a realist. These are not guys who can bring it on a consistent basis. Hill the only close possible exclusion maybe. These are not names you’re going to see with big yards when this team hits it’s offensive peak. It’s great to put hope and promise into your players, but lets face it, this team needs a solid receiver target. The more offensive weapons you throw out on the field, the more chances you have for consistent offense. You’re giving your runningback a little more breathing room. Your qb has more options (because stronger receivers mean more open options, or even guys who can create their own space to make a play on a ball. There’s no one here I think that could prove that more receiver threats won’t help this team. We went 8-8 with an inconsistent offense and lousy defense. Imagine what we could do as a team if we could be a little more consistent on the offensive side, run more offensively plays on average in a game, control the possession of the ball longer. A stronger offensive game only helps on the defensive side of the ball, especially when we’re so close to have a dominant offense.

2010
 Pick 22 – DEN Demaryius Thomas
 Pick 24 – DAL Dez Bryant
2009
 Pick 19 – PHI Jeremy Maclin
 Pick 22 – MIN Percy Harvin
 Pick 29 – NYG Hakeem Nicks
 Pick 30 – TEN Kenny Britt
2007
 Pick 23 – KC Dwayne Bowe
 Pick 27 – NWO Robert Meachem

the list can go on, but my point is simple, when it comes to drafting receivers mid to late first round, the potential of getting a flop seems very slim. I know the depth isn’t huge at receiver going into the draft, but it doesn’t mean you can’t find a quality dependable receiver for years to come.

i get what you are saying and agree to some degree! i dont think we need to draft secondary in the first round either. i believe we need to go either OL or DE. this draft appears to be DB/S deep. according to several different analysts. im all for taking a WR later in the draft or even getting one through FA. i however believe that no matter who you bring in. the passing game will improve, but not to the degree you think. i dont care who is running routes. if the QB doesnt have time to throw, is running for his life, or has to stop reading through his progressions to get rid of the ball. this offense will never progress. DG is never gonna be a drop back, pocket passer..and i think god for that right now with our OL. he has saved us with his legs, more times than he should have. until this team shores up the OL with better pass blockers, and stronger depth. yocan bring all the receivers in you want. there is no doubt after watching the giants game to the texans game. that teams lined up to rush DG, and take away our pass. that was a day ill remind you we were running all over them. when it came down to crunch time. we couldnt stop the pass rush. this team has to become less one dimensional. yes we need another #1 receiver, but we need to give the QB time to throw, and the receivers time to get downfiled and open.

Del Rio is on a short leash this season. They’ve pretty much got one more year to really do something before they blow it all up and start all over again. At that point, you’re at huge risk of losing big time players. This is the year the Jags have to do something. Now you gotta ask yourself. Can you bring in a top prospect OL or DE who’s going to make a big enough impact on your team. If you can point out a prospect in this year’s draft that we could get like that around 16 then please name them. Too many teams are hurting in the same areas as us. We’re talking about a Jags team that was as follows:
   26th in Rec. yards with 3356
   24th in total receptions caught 291
   26th in yard after carry with 1534
   19th in yards per catch with 11.5
   25th in 25+ yard receptions with 24
   24th in first downs with 161
   28th in 100 yard + rec game individual with 3

Now please justify to me an answer that shows me why a receiver shouldn’t be top priority. Is a rookie quarterback really going to make that big of a difference in those categories? Sure the pickings for receivers is slim in this years draft, but when I look at the list of who could probably come in and have an impact on this team, I see:
A.J Green – no brainer but likely won’t last, said to be the best receiver prospect since CJ
Julio Jones – sites have claimed he will a pro-bowler by 2013
Jonathan Baldwin – Some have compared him to Larry Fitzgerald and the way he used to play back in PIT.
Micheal Floyd – Probably not a guy I’d look at for pick 16 but shows promise to be a top notch receiver.
   If I can get my hands on any of those top 3, I’m sorry but I think I gotta pull the trigger

Randall Cobb just recently announced he’s not returning making him Eligible. Also another quality receiver. 990 yards in the air, 400 on the ground, 3 pass comp.. not sure where exactly this guy will go but another guy to look at even if later in the draft

I completely understand your logistic of thinking here coming from a football sense and I tend to agree with your points. Look on the internet though, read into some articles. It’s clearly stated that this is Del Rio’s last shot. MJD made his loyalty to Del Rio pretty clear, and how upset he’d be if they let him go and started this thing all over again.. I’m a sport junkie in all areas.. and if there’s one common theme I’ve seen in sports, the last thing you want is an unhappy star player, because no only will you lose them eventually, but you’ll lose them for nothing to ufa status.. this team needs to do something.. and it mid as well be offensively because you’re too far away from fixing your defense.. If I’m a player playing in Jacksonville.. how long can your loyalty stay with a city without great success or an overly loyal fan base.. I love this team, but they need to do something to shake things up because this is getting ridiculous

i agree with you on your last note. i dont think there are any players that do get tired of either losing or being in the middle of the pack. i also agree that a receiver would go a long way. hell im all for getting another premier pass catcher. i just dont think any will be availiable at 16 this year. i also dont think gene will reach for one that isnt the big 3 or 4 in the first round. that leaves you with FA. there are 1-2 possible great ones and 1-2 good ones out there. with that said..DG behind this OL will not be able to maximize a premier receivers talents. this OL is not good enough at pass blocking! if they were better then i think the receivers, TE’s, and RB’s would be more than capable of taking that next step. so although i would love to see vincet jackson here. i dont think just him being on the field would take us to the next level you are speaking of. im very worried about eben, and meester. eben’s shoulder injury is to the right shoulder. that is outside shoulder on the right side of the line. will he be exploited by russhers cause of the injury? i wasnt convinced that he should be playing RT. i think he would be better suited to move back to his normal RG. i dont think we need to draft a RT in the 1st round, but id rather us draft one that is a natural/normal RT. as far as meester goes. his time is getting short. is este’s or vierling going to be able to step in. i can tell you when they do, there will be a huge drop off for at least a year. will the uche experiment work? there are way more questions to be answered about the OL than our receiver core. as GM-G says..IT ALL STARTS UPFRONT WITH THE BIG GUYS!