Offseason Analysis – Marcedes Lewis

One of the more polarizing figures in the Jaguars offense over the past several seasons is tight end Marcedes Lewis. After a pro bowl year in 2010 where he posted 10 touchdowns, he struggled to get into a rhythm with rookie quarterback Blaine Gabbert in 2011.

While Lewis has been one of the top blocking tight ends since being drafted in 2006, he has failed to consistently make an impact in the passing game. Most of this can be attributed to the franchise’s inability to attain talent on the offensive line, specifically at the right tackle position. Without quality offensive line play, all of the Jaguars’ previous offensive coordinators were forced to leave Lewis in to block. Standing at 6’6″ with a huge wingspan, Lewis should have been a lethal red zone target from the moment he entered the league. Over the course 7 seasons he’s only amassed 21 touchdowns, 10 of which came in the previously mentioned season.

Fortunately, Lewis had a bit of a bounce back season in 2012 with 4 touchdowns and 52 receptions. Let’s see how he did with all of his targets.

Lewis 2012 Yards per Target

Week

Targets

Yards

Yds/Tgts

Min

5

52

10.40

Hou

0

0

0.00

Ind

1

8

8.00

Cin

3

32

10.67

Chi

7

24

3.43

Oak

3

20

6.67

GB

7

21

3.00

Det

6

41

6.83

Ind

4

36

9.00

Hou

4

40

10.00

Ten

6

56

9.33

Buf

8

68

8.50

NYJ

4

4

1.00

Mia

4

8

2.00

NE

6

27

4.50

TEN

10

103

10.30

78

540

6.92

Some of Lewis’ poorer performances against Green Bay and New York came as a result of not turning all his targets into receptions. Lewis only had six drops all year, but his percentage of targets that turned into receptions was still only 68%. It’s safe to assume that with better quarterback play, Lewis is capable of producing another Pro Bowl season. The drafting of Luke Joeckel should benefit Lewis two-fold in freeing him up from having to block so much and in giving whoever is playing quarterback more time. More thorough analysis on Joeckel’s potential impact on Lewis can be found on our site or at Big Cat Country.

– Daniel Lago

Yell at me on Twitter @dlago89