The Jimmy Kennedy experiment is officially over. Kennedy was cut today along with Milford Brown, an offensive guard signed after the slew of injuries occurred on the o-line. Jimmy Kennedy was one of the "calculated risks" taken by Shack Harris. He was a signed from the Chicago Bears for only 50k more than his salary as a restricted free agent demanded. The Bears opted not to match the contract and therefore the former 12th overall pick became a Jaguar for only 750k for a one year deal. Jimmy Kennedy had played well in spurts, but like many members of the defense, a lack of consistency was his downfall.
Del Rio has started cleaning house already, and I love it. I may be reading too much into this move, but I think there may have been a disipline issue involved with Kennedy's release. I really felt like the guy was playing fairly well, definitely better than some of our higher paid D-linemen (remember, Kennedy was only making 750k). Why cut the guy when you may suffer an injury at the position, unless he's made some serious mistake off the field. This may be just a statement to get everyone's attention that underperforming won't be tolerated. One way to show a team you mean business is to cut players mid-season who aren't playing up to their ability level. If it was just one player being released, I'd say it's to make room for a replacement punter. However, since Milford Brown was cut as well, it shows there is more going on here than meets the eye (Milford could've been cut to make room for a punter and Kennedy could've stayed). Either way, another "calculated risk" by Harris hasn't panned out. Logically, the move was solid with very little downside, unfortunately, it didn't pan out and Jimmy wasn't able to resurrect his career on the "First Coast".
The Jags now have 51 players on their roster and will likely sign a punter and move a WR off of the practice squad in anticipation of Matt's imminent suspension. What do you guys think is going on here? Has anyone heard of any discipline problems with Kennedy lately?
-Collin
[Editorial Note: I didn't even consider that this might've been done to make room for the two PUP players not on the active roster, Jeremy Mincey and George Wrighster.]