Jacksonville Jaguars sign fullback Tommy Bohanon
By Daniel Lago
With all of the premium free agents off the market, the Jacksonville Jaguars continued adding fringe players by signing a fullback – Tommy Bohanon.
It took longer than expected, but the Jacksonville Jaguars finally made the earth-shattering move we’ve all been waiting for – they signed a fullback.
The #Jaguars have signed fourth-year FB Tommy Bohanon and second-year WR Larry Pinkard.
— Ryan O'Halloran (@ryanohalloran) April 17, 2017
Good tweet by me
Tommy Bohanon is a former member of the New York Jets who was actually out of the league in 2016. He played for three seasons in New York before being released in the preseason last year. His tangible statistics were fairly meager over the course of 36 games (20 rushing attempts for 67 yards and 17 catches for 155 yards), but his value was almost entirely driven by his lead blocking. Bohanon was the fullback during Chris Ivory‘s most productive years, including his 2015 campaign that saw the current Jaguars back rush for 1070 yards and 7 touchdowns.
More from Jacksonville Jaguars News
- Jacksonville Jaguars should welcome Derrick Henry into the kingdom
- Jaguars Rumors: Trent Baalke seems to be getting respect now
- Jaguars News: This division rival might be making a big move
- Former Jacksonville Jaguars S Johnathan Cyprien: “New Profession, Same Standards”
- Jacksonville Jaguars TE Evan Engram officially gets the franchise tag: 3 takeaways
The Jaguars have not had a fullback since 2015, but they have utilized a lead blocker in a handful of situations. Without a designated fullback on the roster, former offensive coordinator Greg Olson turned to defensive tackle Tyson Alualu for the role. While Alualu filled in admirably, many have speculated whether or not the team would look to transition back to a lead-block running scheme with Doug Marrone and Tom Coughlin running the show.
I don’t think this move guarantees Bohanon a roster spot, but I do think it’s a clear signal that the team wants to move towards having a fullback on the roster. The front office will likely bring in an undrafted free agent or two to compete for this spot.
The other potential implication here is somewhat of a projection; the Jaguars are seemingly going to recommit to the running game and try to take the pressure off of Blake Bortles. A fullback would let the Jaguars play a more power blocking scheme up front in an I-formation, something that would be helpful for a tailback like Leonard Fournette.
We’ll have to wait until the draft to see if this is actually where the team wants to go.