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

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

Zach Miller didn’t pan out. Zach Potter was not tendered and I believe he recently signed on with the St. Louis Rams. That means that the only set in stone player at this group is Marcedes Lewis. Now, there’s not the kind of talent within this group as say the wide receivers. There is more opportunity here for players to step up and snag some back up positions though. So let’s take a look at this somewhat unknown group shall we?

Mandatory Credit: Timothy T. Ludwig-USA TODAY Sports

• Marcedes Lewis: The 28th overall pick in the 2006 draft has been a mainstay and one of the only constants for the Jaguars over the years. He will be counted on to not just return to 2010 form, but to be a leader in the locker room. I’m sure you’ve heard about how he won’t have to play “tackle” anymore due to Luke Joeckel taking up the right side. It makes sense and it’s a good point. Hopefully with this new offense and with improved offensive line play, Lewis will become somewhat of a security blanket that young quarterbacks so desperately need. Lewis is a big target. The Jaguars don’t need to Lewis to be some kind of explosive playmaker. The Jaguars need Lewis to become a reliable red zone target. Lewis just needs to be solid. A very underrated aspect of Lewis’ game (let the eye rolling begin) is his blocking ability. He really is a punishing blocker. What I’m saying is, you can’t pass the ball every single play and sometimes tight ends will need to be kept in to neutralize a pass rush, I don’t care how good your right tackle is. It’s nice to know that Lewis can do that. At the same time, it’s also nice to know that he won’t have to be kept in to block every single play and he’ll actually be able to go out and help the passing game.
• Matt Veldman: One of my favorite UDFAs last season, Veldman showed a lot of promise in training camp and the preseason games before (you guessed it) hitting I.R. before the regular season even began. He has nice size at 6’7 and 255 lbs.. He has good hands, and I believe he’s a leading candidate to be the second tight end.
• Allen Reisner: He’s a 2011 UDFA who has spent most of his time with the Minnesota Vikings before being picked up off waivers by the Jaguars in December of last year. More of a blocking tight end, Reisner will have to show a lot in camp to be noticed.
• Brett Brackett: Brackett came into the league as a UDFA in 2011 with the Miami Dolphins. The highlight of his career so far came with the Philadelphia Eagles when he was believed to be able to compete with Clay Harbor for back up duties. This is Brackett’s second go-round with Jacksonville, his first coming in 2011. He spent 3 days on the practice squad. Anyways, after being released during final cuts in Philly, he signed with Jacksonville in September of last year. Everything was going so well too until he hurt his knee during his first day of practice and (guess) hit I.R..
• Isaiah Stanback: Taken in the 4th round of the 2007 draft by the Dallas Cowboys, Stanback played quarterback in college but was switched to wide receiver/kick returner during his 3 year stint in Jerry-land. While in Dallas, he appeared in a handful of games, never making an impact. Since being released by Dallas in 2009, Stanback has bounced around the league, having played for the New England Patriots, Seattle Seahawks and the New York Giants. He appeared in games for both New England and Seattle. Late last year, he was signed to the Jaguars’ practice squad and promoted to the active roster in December. His leg up on the rest of the competition: he’s the only tight end on the current roster other than Lewis to have actually played in a NFL game.
• Ryan Otten: One of my favorite UDFA signings this year, Otten comes from San Diego State. At his pro day, he ran his 40 in the 4.6 range, had 17 reps on the bench press, and a 33 inch vertical. He was also one of Rob Rang’s “Diamonds in the Rough” for those of you who are keeping up. He’s big and athletic with good hands and had a great junior campaign with 52 receptions, 739 yards and 5 TDs. Defenses, however, began locking down on him during his senior year and he finished with only 47 catches which was still good for 4th on the team. He’s the only tight end in FBS history to go over 100 yards receiving in 3 different games and he averaged 15.8 yards per grab. This is a very intriguing young player the Jaguars have.
• Kyler Reed: Another UDFA Caldwell brought in, Reed ran a 4.43 at his pro day. He played at Nebraska which was more of a run based offense so he doesn’t have eye-popping numbers but he has good size at 6’3 230 lbs. to go with his speed and is a young, athletic prospect with a lot of potential. The passing game at Nebraska was more of a complement to their top-notch rushing attack, so there’s really no telling what Reed is truly capable of.

The pool of talent among the tight ends is fairly underwhelming. The most we can try to look at when analyzing the tight ends is how Lewis will be deployed within the system, and just how productive will he be? After Lewis, it’s all up in the air. Once again, I really like the talent Caldwell brought in via collegiate free agency in Otten and Reed, and I want to see if Veldman is completely healthy and if he can build on the progress that he started last year.

Grazing through this group, I began to wonder if we have bigger plans for the tight end position. I’m not too familiar with how Fisch’s offense will work, especially with him recently saying in an interview that his offense is a mix of concepts and ideas picked up through the years at different stops in his career. I know that the en vogue thing to do now is to try to get multiple tight ends involved and create all kinds of mismatches and havoc on the field, but I don’t see Fisch doing this simply based on the personnel. What I can see is Fisch getting Lewis more involved in the passing game and that in itself is exciting. Hopefully one of these younger players will step up in the meantime and provide the position with some kind of quality depth, that way the Jaguars can stop scraping the bottom of the barrel if the position gets a bit thin. Thankfully Lewis has at the very least been an extremely durable player during his tenure, but it would be nice to see us develop a second tight end.

Overall this position is top-heavy. It’s Lewis at the very top, then a whole bunch of unknowns scraping and fighting for a back up gig.

-David R. Johns

November 18, 2012; Houston, TX, USA; Jacksonville Jaguars tight end Marcedes Lewis (89) talks to teammates on the sideline during a game against the Houston Texans at Reliant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports

One of the most overlooked and dynamic players on the Jacksonville Jaguars’ roster is former first-round pick Marcedes Lewis.  Lewis, playing at tight end, is well respected for both his receiving ability and for his blocking ability.  He is an efficient pass protector and decent road grater, but those two roles have taken up a lot of his snaps.  Now, with the addition of right tackle Luke Joeckel, Lewis become even more of a dual threat rather than just acting as a blocker.

A major part of Lewis’ play is his blocking.  While he is good, his receiving ability is also excellent and is invaluable to the Jaguars.  Yet, because the Jaguars have been so unsettled at right tackle, Lewis has had to block a lot.  Of Lewis’ 849 snaps on offense in 2012, 346 of them were run blocking and 82 of them were pass blocking.  For a team that runs a lot it makes sense that the run blocking numbers are high, but Lewis was held back from route running on 16% of pass plays he saw the field for.

That number should diminish with Joeckel in the mix.  Joeckel, regarded as the best tackle and possibly the best prospect, in this year’s draft can alleviate the burden of pass protection that Lewis has had to shoulder in recent years.  No longer are the Jaguars going to be deficient at right tackle with the likes of Cameron Bradfield and Guy Whimper.

While Lewis will likely be missed as a blocker on some downs, his presence as a receiver will be much more important, especially in year three of the Blaine Gabbert experiment.  Perhaps he can equal his great 2010 when he hauled in 10 touchdowns, 700 yards, and made the Pro Bowl.

- Luke N. Sims

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