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The Jacksonville Jaguars scooped up Red Bryant quickly after he was released by the Super Bowl winning Seattle Seahawks. It was no surprise that the Jaguars went to the Seahawks pipeline for both Bryant and fellow defensive lineman Chris Clemons when they were released. Jaguars head coach Gus Bradley and defensive line coach Todd Wash were very familiar with the two players, given their time on the Seahawks staff.
Even months after his release, Big Red says that his release from the Seahawks is one of the things motivating him this season.
"It definitely motivates you," Bryant told Mike DiRocco of ESPN. "In my situation, me being a captain for the last two years, and then after winning the Super Bowl and in the offseason being released, it adds fuel to the fire. But that's the business of football. Like I always tell people, it isn't what happens to you it's how you respond."
Bryant was a mainstay on the Seahawks defensive line and one of the vocal leaders in the locker room. He was one of the cogs that helped that defense work and he'll be expected to be one of those cogs that makes the Jaguars defense work. He'll be looking to show why the Jaguars were right to scoop him up so quickly and why the Seahawks were wrong, in his mind, for releasing him.
"So if I respond in the right way," Bryant continued. "If I can prove Gus [Bradley] and Dave [Caldwell] right for wanting to pick me up, I'll feel like I accomplished something."
So far, Bryant's impact on the defense has been noticeable in the preseason. The Jaguars run defense has looked better than it has in years past so far, outside of a long touchdown run due to a blown assignment against the Detroit Lions. Bryant's sheer size and power at the strongside end position should also help out the linebackers, Sen'Derrick Marks next to him and even Tyson Alualu. Alualu has looked the best he has ever looked in the preseason, likely because he's coming in as a backup/breather type player.
The Seahawks might not regret letting Bryant go, as their cup runneth over with defensive line talent, but it's a good thing that Bryant wants to try to make them regret it.
They'll need Bryant to play with that attitude against the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday, because if the Jaguars want a chance to win the game, they're going to have to limit the Eagles rushing attack and contain LeSean McCoy.