Quick Bytes: The daily digest of everything you need to know about the Jacksonville Jaguars (and other things).

: Is the end of the Jason Taylor drama near?  There are rumors that Taylor could go to Green Bay.  Adam Schein of Fox Sports thinks this is a good idea.  If it cost a 3rd round pick, I'd still trade for him.  Call me crazy (seriously), but if he's still around into training camp, I'd strongly consider making another phone call.

: Speaking of Fox Sports, Alex Marvez writes up a nice article about David Garrard.  David's done a nice job creating an image around dressing well, because that's typically the lede of any story written about him.

: ESPN's "Scouts Inc" did a roundtable about the AFC South.  Sadly, most of it is behind the subscription wall, but here's a sneek peek:

Jeremy Green: The best offense in the AFC South does not belong to the Indianapolis Colts, but rather the Jacksonville Jaguars. Last season the Colts finished No. 3 in scoring, and the Jaguars No. 6. The Jaguars did this without a receiver or tight end you could even classify as a great No. 2. With the additions of veteran WR Jerry Porter and WR Troy Williamson who has looked excellent in the OTAs, along with a maturing tight end in Marcedes Lewis, all of a sudden this is an explosive offense. The Colts have the better quarterback in Peyton Manning, but David Garrard is a Pro Bowl-caliber quarterback.

Matt Williamson: The Colts are an underrated group, but with Freeney's and Sanders' injury concerns, I am going to give the slight edge to Jacksonville, especially with Gregg Williams now leading its defense. Under Williams, the Jags should be more aggressive coming after opposing quarterbacks with the additions of DEs Derrick Harvey and Quentin Groves through the draft. Tennessee cannot be overlooked in this discussion either, but I am going with Jacksonville.

: John Clayton has concerns about the Jaguars Offensive Line:

The Jacksonville Jaguars completed their offseason training activities yesterday with a final practice.  With this, the Jaguars now have 45 days until the opening of training camp on Saturday, July 26th.  Most players and coaches will take a vacation and spend time with their families as what promises to be a very long season.(February, perhaps!) It's time well deserved, as there's very little idle time between the end of the season and the start of draft season. 

Interestingly, I'm less morose about the beginning of the "dead zone" than usual.  I typically dread the end of OTA's and minicamp because it's the end of any real Jaguars news and other sports are either ending (basketball) or mind-numbing (baseball).  This time, I feel anxious about the start of training camp and the season, but there's something reassuring about all this time away from the team.

Maybe it's all the questions that I need to sort out.  Questions about the roster, questions about the playbook, questions about the state of the team.  The 2008 Jacksonville Jaguars are in so many ways a different team than we're used to.  While the Jaguars always suffered from roster shifts, free agency, etc, I can't recall a year of such a drastic remaking of the team, from the coaches to the players than this offseason.  I think that's why I'm ready for a few weeks to make sense of it all. 

During the next six weeks, Big Cat Country is going to take an exhaustive look at our roster, our coaches, and what we project to be the playbook.  They'll be an interview here and there, some special guests, and hopefully the best Jaguars coverage you can find.  We'll have some fun, of course, but we'll be keeping a close eye on the calendar.  July 26th, so close, yet so far away.

Let's take a quick look at what we know after OTA's and what is still uncertain:

We Know:

1. David Garrard is on his game.  Recent Jaguars history has shown us that our passing game is slow to develop.  Not this time, David's throwing freaking lasers, our receivers are catching passes, and things are on track.

2. Gregg Williams is experimenting with the attack.  The Jaguars "new" defense, so far, is blitz heavy.  It's unclear if this is a way for Gregg Williams to figure out what his players can do or if it's a sign of things to come.  It's obvious that the defense we fielded against the Patriots in the Playoffs is dead and gone.

3. Derrick Harvey and Quentin Groves are fast.  It's hard to measure their impact in their shorts and t-shirts, but speed is obvious.  In fact, the entire defense reeks of speed from top to bottom.  Can you find a faster defensive group than Harvey, Groves, Mathis, Durant, Peterson, and Nelson?

4. Richard Collier and Justin Durant are rapidly replacing Khalif Barnes and Clint Ingram at their respective starting positions.

We Don't Know:

1. Our wide receivers: I can tell you for sure that Porter, Williams, and Northcutt will be our X, Y, and Slot receivers accordingly.  I can tell you with a strong degree of probability that Troy Williamson and John Broussard will be one of the two remaing roster spots.  Matt Jones, Mike Walker, and the rest of the bunch are competing for one remaining spot, as carrying six receivers is foolish.

2. Can Troy Williamson keep on catching when the pads are on and it really matters.  Yes, Troy has excelled during practice, but he's looked pretty good in Vikings OTA's as well.  In fact, we've got questions about all the first round reconstruction projects.  Is Jimmy Kennedy going to turn it on at defensive tackle?  Will Matt Jones turn his career around and finally take the next step?

3. Will the Jaguars actually bring the heat?  Yes, our defense looks fast, but how will it translate in the pads on environment of camp and the preseason? 

4. Will the Jaguars make it to September without major injury?  No matter how important practice is to developing a playoff team, the most important thing is for the Jaguars to start the season fast and healthy.  The AFC South will be decided in the first four weeks of the season, starting slow and injured greatly effects our ability to win the division.

That's my quick take.  We've got weeks and weeks to flesh this out further, so be prepared for more analysis.

I'd like to know what you'd like to know about the Jaguars during the dead zone?  What would you like to discuss, debate, analyze, etc?  What questions do you have about the 2008 Jaguars?  I'm happy to explore any topic, so let me know what you're thinking!

-Chris

Quick Bytes: The daily digest of everything you need to know about the Jacksonville Jaguars (and other things).

:  I participated in two podcasts this week.  First, the great guys at Football Guys had me on to talk about the Jaguars. (of course).  Thanks again to Cecil and Sigmund for having me on.  You can download the podcast here .

:  If you liked that, you'll love the full hour I did with JagNation last night on their weekly talk show.  Charlie Bernstein, Alfie, and myself debate and discuss just about everything you can think of about our Jaguars.  I won't toot my own horn here, but I think this is a pretty good show.  Download it here for your  listening pleasure!

: The Wide Receiver picture might have gotten a little more clear today.  Mike Walker was cleared by the medical staff to practice!  He even came back a day earlier than he planned.  Director of Scouting Gene Smith had this to say:

“He made a nice first-day impression. He looked both fast and quick. That’s a good sign for where he’s at. The one thing about Mike is he has a nice catching radius. Everything looks easy,” Smith said. “I think Mike can be as good as he decides to be, if he sustains his health.

OTA Report 6.3 and 6.4:

: David Garrard is getting ready to put on a show for the Jaguars fans this weekend.  Monday and Tuesday's OTA's were, according to Vic Ketchman, "fantastic".  He's "relaxed, throwing with ease" and most importantly, doing what star starting quarterbacks do.  He's going to show the fans and the media that he's worth every penny.

: D.D Terry had a day of ups and downs.  He's showing quickness and power in a third-down running back sort of way.  Unfortunately, there's not much of a chance he'd see any time in the regular season in that role, but there's nothing wrong with developing some future talent.  Terry put himself in a bad spot by missreading a blocking assignment and fumbling a ball.   Remember, the Jaguars have a tight competition for the final RB spot, so one fumble, one missed assignment, and it's game over.

: Gregg Williams is giving a variety of defensive looks on every single snap.  It's so intense that it's hard to measure the progress of Cleo Lemon and Paul Smith because of all the zone blitzing, safety blitzes, corner blitzes, etc.  Williams is going to make sure that our quarterbacks are never surprised by anything. 

: Reggie Williams, who I've heard very little about so far this OTA season, is looking "like a polished veteran receiver".  I want nothing more than to see Reggie prove to the world that 10 touchdowns was anything other than a fluke season.

: Safety Jammal Fudge is back from Clemson after finishing classes!

: Gerald Sensabaugh is not accepting that Brian Williams took his starting spot lightly.  Gerald deflected a few passes and looks completely recovered from his injured shoulders.

: Paul Smith is looking like a rookie quarterback, moments of brilliance, moments of frustration.  Pay attention to #12 at Minicamp.

That's all for now.  More exciting things coming down the pipeline!

-Chris

Quick Bytes: The daily digest of everything you need to know about the Jacksonville Jaguars (and other things).

:  Monday's OTA:

• Key Injuries: DE Brian Smith and WR Mike Walker are were both sidelined.  Walker is clearly on an intentionally slow recovery.  Better to let him ease through the summer rather than send him to camp injured.
•  Brian Smith, on the other hand, will not be a Jaguar on September first.  His injury is simply too nagging and will not allow him a chance to even try out for the roster.  The Jaguars took a risk on Smith and missed.  With all the competition on our roster, it'd be foolish to deny someone who can prove themselves a spot on the team or practice squad for an unknown quantity in Smith.  He clearly wants to play, but his body won't let him.
• Defensive End Reggie Hayward was absent from both OTA's so far this week for reasons unknown.  He is expected to practice on Thursday (today), so I assume this a no-news equals good news event.
•  The Wide Receiver battle of Troy Williamson and John Broussard is proceding as predicted.  Both are competing for the same "fast deep threat" role in the offense, and both are making impressive catches.  Yes, Troy Williamson is catching the ball.
• QB Todd Bouman, according to Vic Ketchman, has the most impressive arm so far in camp.  Though Garrard looked his best so far on Monday.  Bouman is locked into an epic battle with UDFA Paul Smith for the "number three" QB spot.  I can tell you for a fact that this is a battle that the coaches want Paul Smith to win, but Bouman will not go down without a fight.
• Each observer of the OTA's has commented on how quick Quentin Groves is looking so far.  Certainly, everyone looks fast when they're in t-shirts and there is no real contact, but it's a very positive sign.  Quentin is very excited about being a defensive end, which is also uplifting.
• Matt Jones had a very bad practice on Thursday, which led to his lack of reps on Monday and Tuesday.  There is something afoot between the Jaguars and Matt Jones right now, and it isn't good for either one.  More on this later.
• Donnie Henderson is a very vocal coach.  If it makes our secondary stronger, yell away. 
  

: Tuesday's OTA

• The "starting DE's" with Hayward and Spicer absent are James Wyche and Kenny Pettway.  This is a good time for both of them to be impressive, as they're competing the fifth spot in the rotation, presuming of course that Hayward, Spicer, Harvey and Groves make the team. 
• Something to watch: DE/DPR Brent Hawkins took some reps at linebacker, as well as at DE.  Hawkins needs to prove himself as useful as possible, considering the crowd at both DE and LB
  
• Brian Williams, as usual, was the starting strong safety.  Shame on you Vic Ketchman for being all wishy washy about Williams move to safety, then mocking the fans for not seeing the obviousness of the move.  It was you, good sir, that put the doubt in our minds.  The Collective Fanbase saw the Florence Signing as the writing on the wall for the move, your resistance toward confirming that was silly and should not entitle you to mocking us. 
• Matt Jones caught a pass.  At this point, this is news

• Jerry Porter has some sort of Achilles strain that is having him iced up rather than on the field.  Nothing to worry about, he's probably working a little harder than he should to make an impression with the team. 
  
• Chauncey Washington and D.D. Terry are having a bit of a competition for a backup running back spot.  Word on the street is that the coaches are very happy with Terry. 
• Vince Manuwai has moved from left guard to right guard, putting him next to Tony Pashos on the line.  The Jaguars are going to have a whole lot of big runs to the right side with the two of them run blocking.
  

Hopefully we'll have more updates as the Thursday Morning OTA concludes!

-Chris

On Monday, the Jaguars will begin their third session of Offseason Training Activities (OTA), with eight more practices until their Mini-camp on the weekend of June 6th.  These OTA sessions are critical in building a cohesive and strong football team because there is so little time in training camp to build relationships and put units on the same page. 

Remember, the 2008 Jacksonville Jaguars open their season in Tennessee, and then play the Colts and Texans in the first month of the regular season.  Without a strong start, the Jaguars could find themselves hopelessly behind in the critical AFC South division race before Christmas Decorations appear in the Avenues Mall.

Jaguars.com's Vic Ketchman, a writer any Jaguars fan is familiar with, is chafing at the interest in the teams OTA"s, which is terribly off-base.  While yes, these are just "underwear" practices, there is a feeling of importance that cannot be brushed aside, as Vic is wont to do:

If I may, I’ll ask that we not take OTA’s too seriously. We really need to keep this in perspective. We lost perspective on Jason Taylor. We lost perspective on Lito Sheppard. Please, let’s not suffer the same fate in OTA’s. They’re really not that big of a deal.

Don't blame the fans, Vic, it's not our fault.  Just as you implore us to "not blame the media" for reporting what they're told, you certainly cannot blame the fans for paying attention to events of even the smallest importance.  We're all invited to the 24 hour news cycle, the never-ending NFL season, and the renewal of hope that each offseason brings.  Of course we want to know how Mike Walker's looking during OTA's, just as we want to know if Drayton Florence is getting beat deep, or why Brian Smith is relegated to standing on the sidelines.  The NFL fan of 2008 understands far more the effects of contracts, the perils of labor strife in the league, and how champions are made during the "dead zone".  We are far more aware now than ever before, and we expect to know how the practices are going.  Even if it's too far to tell if a player can translate perfect practice into practical performance, it's not too much to ask to start knowing the story before it's written. 

The Jaguars are going to go deep into the playoffs this year.  They've constructed a team with the potential for greatness.  In February of 2009, we'll be looking back to these mere OTA practices as our first glance at what should be a fantastic season.  I see no harm in trying to measure that progress now. 

Enough of that meta-NFL nonsense, let's look at what we've learned:

• Wide Receiver Mike Walker did not practice on Tuesday (5.13), but did take the field on Thursday (5.15).  Mike "sky" Walker is one of the most interesting players to watch as we move closer to Training Camp.  He showed flashes of brilliance, but ultimately spent the year on Injured Reserve as he slowly worked his knee back toward 100%.
• Fred Taylor, as usual, did not attend the first OTA's.  Taylor spends his offseason in South Florida doing his special training regimen, the same one that has him averaging 5.2 yards per carry.  He plans on spending some of his time in Jacksonville, so his absence is noted but not noteworthy.
• Safety Jamaal Fudge missed the first OTA's, but for a wonderful reason.  Fudge is finishing his classes at Clemson University.  With all the talks of holdouts, labor unrest, and Spygate, stories like these tend to slip through the cracks.  Jamaal is doing the right thing as he's a good player, but thinking about life after the NFL is critical for players like him
• Injury Report: Marcades Lewis missed OTA's from a Knee Injury that I suspect might have something to do with being one of the few uninjured TE's in Jacksonville right now.  Mike Walker missed one, as mentioned before.  Tight Ends George Wrightster and Greg Estandia both missed time for injured Knee and Shoulder, respectively.  Both are nursing injuries from last season that should be addressed in time for training camp
• DE/LB Brian Smith is still sidelined from his college injury.  More to come on this later.

Notable Quotables:

David Garrard: On Jerry Porter:

“I think he’s going to be a great receiver here. He’s a receiver who can make spectacular plays,”

Offensive Coordinator Dirk Koetter: On Installing the Offense:

“We’re installing about 15 pass plays a day. We’re throwing a lot at them,”

Jack Del Rio on Contract Extensions for Rob Meier and Paul Spicer:

"We're happy to have Rob done," said Jaguars coach Jack Del Rio. "We have the possibility of getting something done with Paul at some point. We'll see where that goes."

"From our standpoint, we feel like we've made a fair legitimate proposal to these guys and one guy [Meier] is happy and one guy [Spicer] is out there waiting,".

Linebacker Clint Ingram: On Tackling Fundamentals:

"We want to be fundamentally sound. We want to be better tacklers, better at hustling, all that sense of the game,"

What to Watch For:

Not much, sadly.  The Rookies have their first OTA on Monday, though these are all closed to the public and therefore will only learn how they do based on secondary sources.

Which is not to say that Big Cat Country won't have a story or three in the process.  I have two interviews planned this week with the possiblity, albeit slim, of one that might knock your socks off.

Stay Tuned...

-Chris

Quick Bytes: The daily digest of everything you need to know about the Jacksonville Jaguars.

:  Let's start with another walk down memory lane.  In this piece from deep inside the Sports Illustrated Vault we learn about the life and development of  Tony Boselli and his road to the Jacksonville Jaguars.  This will surprise you, as a youngster, Tony loved to eat:

Despite earning minimum wage, he never complained about his paycheck because he was close to the action and close to the food. On his breaks he would devour Big Macs, french fries, milk shakes and apple pies. "One of my managers called one day and said, 'I can't afford him. He's eating more than he's making,' " Tony Sr. says. "So, I transferred Little Tony to the landscaping crew."

:  If you don't mind a little math, Big Cat Country favorite NFL Stats breaks down the Ellsberg Paradox and why coaches should go for it more on fourth down.  While the Jaguars are not mentioned directly, the shadow of Jack Del Rio is everywhere.

: The Football Professor has done the math and made their 2008 season projections .  They have the AFC South finishing like this: Indianapolis Colts 11-5, Jacksonville Jaguars 10-6, Houston Texans 7-9, Tennessee Titans 7-9.  I'd be OK with that outcome, though the road to a Jaguars Super Bowl must run through a division title.

: Believe it or not, there's actually a little bit of drama at the running back position for the Jaguars.

: I'll never understand how the writing is so terrible at ESPN.com, but ESPN the Magazine does fantastic work.  Are they so terribly divided that they can't share the talent?  Anyhow, David Garrard is the subject of a fantastic article, though it leaves me with some questions about his wife:

"Jack took a chance on him," says Garrard's wife, Mary, sitting next to her husband on the couch. She pauses, purses her lips. "It would have been really hard for me to hitch my cart to a guy who ended the season like Dave did in 2006."

Garrard says. "I'd had a few turnovers, and I needed to step up. That play changed the way people saw me. It changed the way I saw myself." Garrard adds that when he called Mary after the game, she just kept screaming into the phone, "Ka-ching! Ka-ching! Ka-ching!"

: A list of 2009 free agents , courtesy of Adam Schefter of NFL.com.  Let's go ahead and spread a rumor that the Jaguars are targeting T.J. Houshmandzadeh.  And yes, I had to copy/paste that.