If you look at the positions these guys played, you can pretty much gather why they were cut even without seeing them play. Smolko was a career practice squad guy who got signed and cut by the Jaguars more than once. He was also one of eight tight ends that the Jaguars had collected. The same can be said about Broussard who had been tettering on the edge for quite some time. Even with Broussard, Edwards and J. Harvey getting the ax, the Jaguars have seven wide receivers on their current roster. There was talk of Matt Jones being one of the guys who was booted until his outstanding preseason performance. That is when it became obvious that Broussard was going to be the one to go.

The Jaguars have until August 30th to slim their roster down to the traditional 53 man roster we know and love. Several players will be playing for their job in the final preseason game against the Washington Redskins tomorrow night.

For example, Del Rio likes to keep only two quarterbacks around so that draws into question Todd Bouman‘s performance over the preseason. Bouman played well against Miami, scoring us the only two touchdowns we got that night. He may have earned himself a bench spot at third string, especially if he plays particularly well against Washington.

Wide receiver, as mentioned above, is bloated at seven. Reggie Williams, Dennis Northcutt, Matt Jones and Mike Walker have all but guaranteed themselves a spot on the roster. Jerry Porter, with his large contract, will also make the roster despite not playing due to injury. Will Del Rio want to keep a sixth one around? Troy Williamson probably hopes so.

There are other bubble guys that are looking to fill up back up spots. Jamaal Fudge (a Jacksonville native) and Pierson Prioleau (the guy who made game saving plays in both the Tampa Bay and Atlanta games) are battling at defensive back. Uche Nwaneri and Tutan Reyes are looking to fill in Brad Meester‘s spot as he recovers.

This is what preseason is about. This is what makes it interesting. Some people enjoy freaking out about the first stringer’s performance but that isn’t really the story. It is about these bubble guys who are fighting desperately to get a job doing what they love to do. It is about finding those guys who are the undrafted break out players. It is its own excitement.

Here’s a wrap up:

Maurice Jones-Drew came out swinging but it took a little bit longer for David Garrard (4/10 for 45 yards) to warm up. Garrard did run well, though. He had one run for 21 yards and then a quarterback sneak for a touchdown.

Neither Fred Taylor nor Troy Williamson suited up.

Reggie Nelson, however, was all over the place and totally owning everyone he came in contact with. He and Drayton Florence got an amazing interception to stop a Falcon’s drive.

Matt Jones did really well. He missed one catch of note but it was because it wasn’t thrown that well.

Mike Walker, on the other hand, was a little iffy. He probably caught as many passes as he dropped and he missed a sure touchdown pass from Cleo Lemon. You can’t blame the guy, though. He hasn’t played a game in almost two years. He is probably rusty.

It was hard to judge Lemon’s performance because he was up against second stringers. He looked solid enough. Compared to the other quarterbacks, he had the best performance of the night with 6/10 passes completed and 46 yards. Did I mention we ran the ball a lot?

Now for the run: Chauncy Washington took a little to warm up but he got himself moving eventually. He got one touchdown, his longest run was 6 yards and he totaled 33 yards for the night.

The guy who accumulated the most amount of yards for the night was Greg Jones.  He ran for 39 yards on five attempts. I have always liked Greg Jones and we signed him to an amazing (for him) contract in the off season.

The story of the night is Brian Witherspoon, an undrafted free agent. That kid is FAST. If he hadn’t fumbled a return he would be the talk of the entire game.

Josh Scobee had some amazing kick offs. The kick hung in the air for a while and then landed on the third yard line. He also nailed his field goals. He did much, much better compared to Jason Elam who missed two field goals.

The tackling was awful. Quentin Groves, however, got a nice sack and a good stop against the Falcon’s running back.

Jackson De Ville is apparently not allowed anywhere near the field when the ball is in play. He sustained a hefty fee last year and afterward stood in a cage for the rest of the season. I guess that has carried into this season. Too bad, he is an AWESOME mascot.

The game ended as the Falcons drove down the field for a touchdown. In the last few seconds of the game, D. J. Shockley threw an interception to Pierson Prioleau in the endzone to end the game. It was a pretty exciting end to a preseason game.

Again, it is hard to judge based on preseason. With the first preseason game of the year, everyone is a bit rusty. Mike Smith looked good as the coach and picking up Matt Ryan looks like it will benifit the Falcons. Next week we take on the Dolphins. I cannot wait.