And rounding out the Jacksonville Jaguars Top 10 busts (as determined by me), when finish on a strong note. Quite possibly the worst first round pick in the history of the Jacksonville Jaguars, and quite an ironic draft pick when you consider the circumstances.
| Career Stats | |||||||||||||||
| Season | Team | Receiving | Rushing | Fumbles | |||||||||||
| G | GS | Rec | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Att | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | FUM | Lost | ||
| 2004 | Jacksonville Jaguars | 0 | 0 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 2003 | Jacksonville Jaguars | 0 | 0 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 2002 | Jacksonville Jaguars | 0 | 0 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 2001 | Jacksonville Jaguars | 0 | 0 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 2000 | Jacksonville Jaguars | 13 | 2 | 14 | 154 | 11.0 | 45 | 1 | 3 | 28 | 9.3 | 20 | 0 | 3 | 1 |
| TOTAL | 14 | 154 | 11.0 | 45 | 1 | 3 | 28 | 9.3 | 20 | 0 | 3 | 1 | |||
Heck I mean, you don't even need to read the jump to see why R.J. Soward was a bust.
In the 2000 NFL Draft, the Jacksonville Jaguars were in need of a wide receiver to groom and take over for Keenan McCardell, as it was pretty obvious the Jaguars were not going to keep Keenan long term. R.J. Soward was an immensely talented wide receiver coming out of Southern Cal. He scored 32 touchdowns in his 4 seasons as a Trojan, but his off-field issues pushed him down in the draft. Where the irony comes into play with the R.J. Soward draft pick, was the fact that then Jaguars coach Tom Coughlin passed on a local wide receiver product, who was just as talented as Soward but also had off-field issues, Laveranues Coles.
If you remember, Coles who is from Jacksonville, was kicked out of Florida State on his third strike after Coles and his teammate Peter Warrick received over $400 worth of clothing for just about $20 at a Tallahassee Dillards, which in the state of Florida is shoplifting. Coles, like Soward, was considered one of the better receivers in the 2000 NFL Draft but lasted until the third round.
Tom Coughlin passed on taking the local receiver in Coles, citing his off the field issues opting to go with R.J. Soward. Oddly enough, Soward brought on much more trouble than he was worth. During his first training camp, Tom Coughlin had to send a limo to pick Soward up for practice every day to make sure he would actually make it to practice. Soward was also suspended from the NFL multiple times for violating the leagues substance abuse policy, and later admitted while he was at USC he smoked marijuana every day. Soward's suspensions in the NFL however, came from alcohol abuse. To this date Coles, who's nickname is "Trouble", has never been in trouble with the NFL.
In 2004 Soward resurfaced in professional football in the Canadian Football League, signing with the Toronto Argonauts. Soward played for the Argonauts up until 2006 when he was released. According to Wikipedia, Soward has been making his living repairing televisions and working a warehouse. Soward did however sign with the Wenatchee Valley Venom of the Indoor Football League earlier this year. The Venom are currently 2-4.
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