FanPost

Poised to Make the Leap

The Jaguars are there. They showed that last year. In 2008, it was believed that the Jaguars were only a guy or two from being a real Super Bowl contender. No, this year's Jaguars team wasn't that close, but they showed the division that they are here to stay. Combine a solid young offense, outstanding special teams, and a lot of money to spend. What do you get? You get a team that could go on a rampage in the upcoming season.

Gene Smith has a lot of help this off-season. He has more picks in the draft than he did last year, and he's working with one of the lowest team salaries in the NFL. He's also got some of last year's picks coming back after season long injuries. D'Anthony Smith and Scotty McGee were both injured by the time the season started last year, but they are both expected to pick up right where they left off. Jack Del Rio has said that D'Anthony Smith is in the best shape he's ever been. Those two guys basically represent extra draft picks this year.

It's worth noting that the Jaguars don't have too many needs to address. Yes, they need a linebacker, a couple safeties, and a couple lineman on both sides of the ball, but free agency could provide some short term patches while the draft fixes a couple of those spots. I think it's safe to say that the Jaguars won't go after the big name players if and when free agency begins, but he has made very smart pick-ups in the past. Kassim Osgood was good, right?



FanPosts do not necessarily reflect the views of the authors of Big Cat Country or SB Nation.