Contrary to other reports , the Jacksonville Jaguars have used the 2008 offseason to announce to the division that they are the team to beat in the AFC South.  While the Indianapolis Colts deserve the respect due to a six-time division winner, there is no reason to assume that the reigning champs have done enough to hold their position at the top of the South.

Yes, this article intended as a bit of Counter Battery fire toward my good friend and Indianapolis Colts writer over at Stampede Blue.  Big Blue Shoe, as he calls himself, delights in mocking our Jaguars whenever possible, in what can only be a defense mechanism to the pain and suffering that Jacksonville is going to give their team in 2008. 

And we can forgive him, it's merely one step in the Kubler-Ross "Stages of Grief ": In this case, our fellow Colts fans are deeply in denial of the changes and progress made by the Jaguars during this offseason.  Denial manifests itself in peculiar ways in a fanbase,  the Colts will find their evidence in attacking statistics from last season that make the Jaguars look like an Arena League team and hope that the trend continues.

Specifically:

Now before I get flamed, hear me out. The Jaguars are a very good team at shutting down an opponents running game. However, against the pass, the Jaguars flat out suck. They can't pressure the QB and their secondary is highly suspect. The Jaguars defense in 2007 allowed opposing playoff QBs to complete 78% of their passes for 599 yards, 5 TDs and 2 INTs.

In the modern NFL, that is a sucky defense.

I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but there is simply no way the Jacksonville Jaguars field anywhere close to that poor of a pass defense in 2008.  The Jaguars secondary in 2007 featured a rookie tossed into the starting role with Reggie Nelson,  a 33 year old Sammy Knight playing a fill-in role with Gerald Sensabaugh on Injured Reserve, an Injured Rashean Mathis, and a healthy but out-of-position Brian Williams rounding out the starters. 

Secondary Concerns:

There was a reason that Sammy Knight often led the team in tackles week in and week out, that's because he could not cover a tight end to save his life and would get targeted every single week.  That the Jaguars held together any sort of defense with his inability to cover is still remarkable.  Sammy Knight is now a New York Giant, and we won't have to worry about him again.

In his place the Jaguars will feature Brian Williams, a former Cornerback that is a natural at Safety.  In fact, he's a bigger version of the Colts safety Bob Sanders.  Williams is going to move to Strong Safety and be used all over the field by Gregg Williams, both in run support and in pass coverage.  Where tight ends ran right by Sammy and were wide open, they'll have a guy that shut down Randy Moss running side by side.

Let's not also forget that our Free Safety, Reggie Nelson, will have another year under his belt.  Gregg Williams and Donnie Henderson will demand that Reggie steps up the intellectual side of his game, especially considering that he'll be playing a lot more center field with the Jaguars likely emphasis on pressuring the quarterback.

Finally, add in a healthy Gerald Sensabaugh, who struggled in September because he was playing with a torn labrum, and went on injured reserve when he tore the other one, and Florence/Mathis on the outside, and you've got a recipe for a huge improvement in our secondary.

The Quarterback must go down, and he must go down hard:

Before we discuss our changes at defensive end, lets take a moment consider the messages sent from the front office about our defensive line.  The Jaguars, I will admit, have made mistakes with their draft picks.  Where they are batting .1000 are in resigning and extending their players. You simply do not hear about the Jaguars offering their players big extensions and then having the player fail to perform.  The Jaguars sent Marcus Stroud to Buffalo and extended the contracts of Rob Meier and Tony McDaniel, both of which will be critical in the new "Teal Curtain".  It's to be expected that the Colts disregard Tony McDaniel as a threat, they've never really seen him.  Let's just say that Peyton Manning will have a 6-7, 310lb beast in the middle, just like Stroud used to be.

The outside, of course, is going to be manned on occasion by the rookies, Derrek Harvey and Quentin Groves.  It's completely fair to assume that because they are first year players that their impact will be minimal.  The problem with that reasoning is that both of these players will be used as pass rushers, an area where physical gifts are more important than experience.  When Quentin Groves takes the field on 3rd and 7, it will not be terribly hard for him to figure out what he's supposed to do.  Harvey has it a little tougher, as you'll see him playing the run and the pass more frequently.

In either case, it's not as though they'll be all alone on the ends.  Reggie Hayward will be two years removed from his injury, Paul Spicer will eventually be extended, and the group will have a good shot at being this years New York Giants in regards to attacking the quarterback.

Absolute Nonsense:

I hate to nitpick, but this is the most deranged thing I've ever read:

There is not one single area where Jacksonville is "better" than Indy. Maybe their special teams coverage units. Maybe. Everything else is a clear advantage for the Colts. Indy's QB, WRs, o-line, d-line, TEs, CBs, safeties, LBers, kicker, and punter are all better than Jacksonville's. Even the running back position favors Indy.

I'll grant Quarterback, I'll even concede the offensive line and Tight Ends.  But to say that the Colts have better Linebackers, Defensive Line, and Secondary than the Jaguars is an ignorant statement.  The Jaguars use their linebackers a little differently than the Colts do in the "Dungy 2", and really can't be compared directly.  The combination of Durrant, Ingram, Peterson, and Smith give the Jaguars three guys who can play every combination of linebacker spots, the speed to play sideline to sideline, and a nasty hard hitting attitude.  I'd take our bench linebacker over any of the Colts starters.  Remember, the biggest knock on the Jaguars pass rushers is that they're young.  None of our guys are coming off of a Lis Franc, like Mr. Freeney.

And the Running Backs?  Are you serious?  I don't care who the third and fourth running backs are on the Colts roster, Fred and Maurice are enough to do the trick.  Call me crazy, but were something terrible to happen, Greg Jones would surprise a lot of people with his ability to run the ball. 

It is absolute absurdity to assume that a team is completely and utterly the master of another.  The Jacksonville Jaguars of 2008 will be unlike any the Colts have ever seen.  While it's easy to write the team off because they've not proved anything on the field yet, the Jaguars have made all the right moves to overtake the Colts in the AFC South.

Enjoy the Homerism for now Indy, in a few months we'll give you a reality check...

-Chris

Jacksonville Jaguars Running Backs Coach Kennedy Pola

Kennedy Pola

Running Backs; born November 22, 1963, Pago, Pago, American Samoa. Fullback Southern California 1982-85. No pro playing experience. College coach: UCLA 1992-93, San Diego State 1994-96, Colorado 1997-98, San Diego State 1999, Southern California 2000-2003. Pro coach: Cleveland Browns 2004, joined Jaguars in 2005.

Pola is in his third season with Jacksonville after spending his first NFL season with the Browns. In 2006, his second season, the Jaguars set a single season franchise record for rushing yards (2,541) and averaged just short of 160 yards.

Kennedy comes from good football stock. To start, his nephew is Troy Polamalu, a first round pick of our hated rival... Pittsburgh... If you're wondering, yes, Pola shortened his name from Polamalu after arriving in America to decrease pronunciation issues. Troy credits his uncle as having a large impact on his life.

Polamalu, the Steelers' three-time Pro Bowl safety, grew up in a football-playing family in which a half-dozen close relatives played in college or in the NFL. Among them is uncle Kennedy Pola, one of the most influential people in his life and, now, Jacksonville Jaguars running backs coach.

Troy is a hall of fame quality guy on and off the field.  It says a lot about Pola's character and football knowledge that Troy would credit him as most influential among his whole football playing family.

Pola knows football, plain and simple. He's coached numerous positions including Running Backs, Linebackers, and special teams. He was a RB.  This is a guy some people even have their eye on for a more prominent role. That's the NFL though; it's a game of replacement not only in terms of players, but also quality coaches.

Pola coached one of the greatest college RB's in history, Reggie Bush and accomplished an even greater feat in keeping the teettering on obese LenDale White motivated and competitive.

Jaguars coach Jack Del Rio has plenty of praise for Pola's work with the running backs. Fred Taylor is coming off three consecutive 100-yard games and Jacksonville's average of 143.8 yards rushing per game is second in the league.

"I trust Kennedy Pola to manage the process for us," Del Rio said. "He had a little experience with it dealing with Reggie Bush and LenDale White at Southern Cal. He came here ... and he has done a great job with that group and has created a competitive atmosphere and the guys really challenge each other - but they always keep the team first."

It's all about keeping a ‘team first’ mentality. Much credit must be given to the ever-so-eloquent Maurice Jones-Drew for the way he approached Fred Taylor, a proud individual and the starter when Jones-Drew arrived. That could have turned into a tumultuous situation were it not for solid coaching and Maurice's character. Kennedy should be given some credit for the lightning quick progression of Maurice into the Jaguars running game.

 Kennedy is also responsible for coaching our fullback(s). Let's examine Greg Jones. We all remember (vividly) that play which knocked out Jones' knee at a point where it was looking like he would be the Jags future at tailback. That changed his and Fred Taylor's fortune forever. Fred went on to have a resurgence in his career and Jones was forced to learn a new trade... lead blocking. Thankfully he had a good teacher in Pola who has presided over his progression to his current pro bowl form.

 Pola is getting recognition all over the league. Earlier this year the Jaguars denied the Titans the right to interview Pola for a position with their organization. My guess, they were hoping he could once again do what he did at USC and what they were failing at... motivating Lendale White.

 A sports writer who I'm a big fan of, Michael David Smith , even puts Pola on his short list for head coaching candidates in his series "Meet Your 2008 Head Coaching Candidates. "  Below is his assessment of Pola's positives.

 Pros: Everywhere he's been, the running backs have looked well-coached, and players who have worked with him are just about universal in their praise.

Pola is obviously seen around league circles as an effective teacher and excellent motivator. He has clearly peaked the interest of other teams around the league.