Marcedes Lewis is No Longer Worth Hanging Onto
By Luke Sims
Marcedes Lewis leveraged his stellar play in the 2010 season into a nice contract with the Jacksonville Jaguars. The former first round pick amassed 58 receptions and 700 yards in that season and paired those numbers with 10 touchdowns.
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Since 2010, Lewis has decline significantly. Despite a solid outing in 2012, Lewis has seen a noticeable drop in productivity. This ranges from his yardage totals (including dropping 160 yards despite just six less receptions in 2012 from 2014) which have now hit the lowest since his rookie year (206 in 2014) to his touchdowns (just 10 over four seasons after posting 10 in 2010 alone) to his yards per game (down to 25.8).
For a team that desperately needs consistent offensive production, Lewis is becoming an overpriced, aging, and oft-injured option. He hasn’t completed a full season over the past two seasons, leaving the Jaguars with severely shallow tight end pools to work with.
But even without offensive production like that in 2010, Lewis has always had quality blocking to back up his position.
That was called into question this season, with Lewis failing to pave the way for the running game, helping a struggling offensive line. While his pass protection still help up alright, Lewis is no longer clearly better than other options at tight end.
With better options available in free agency and with some enticing options in the draft as well, the Jaguars may find that the 2015 season is the time to move past Lewis. They should begin putting in place his replacement or moving him into backup role at a minimum.
Blake Bortles and the offensive line need someone better in place at the tight end position as they seek to revitalize an offense that has failed to perform well for seemingly a decade.
Marcedes Lewis has been an important member of the Jaguars and provides a strong, respectful veteran presence for a young team. Nostalgia shouldn’t be enough to keep him in Jacksonville, however.