An Afternoon Beer: Best of Today’s Jaguars Mailbags
As you’ll read in a second, I feel like the language out of Everbank is heavily suggesting some serious free agency action. Am I excited? Sure, I guess…it’s hard not to get excited about your team bringing in someone who might bring big help immediately. But that’s rarely the case and you know what they say about “get rich quick” schemes. Sometimes you get rich and sometimes you end up buttnaked in the middle of a cowfield on a starless night with a throbbing headache, blood crusted in your hair, and no idea which way leads home. I don’t wanna catch whatever neurological disease that was behind the decisions to sign Jerry Porter and Drayton Florence and go all crazy with free agents here, but I think a young, well-priced and solid player would be nice. I see a stopgap-type at safety and think Gene might get a young linebacker that ends up being around for awhile (think Mike Peterson).
Further thoughts after the jump…
From today’s Ozone:
"John from Jacksonville:I think you skipped over Micah’s question yesterday, although that could have been intentional. Assuming it wasn’t, what do you look for in a good linebacker prospect? Great work so far.John: Run fast and hit hard."
Good answer, young Oesh. Couldn’t agree more. With a dominant defensive line, one premier cornerback, and decent supporting cast in the secondary, the linebackers should not have to do much. Seriously, I think the Jaguars will be getting their MLB of the future in free agency – call it a hunch, call it the loud voice of the ignorant (most often seen in politics and religion – the less they know, the harder they yell), or just call it the six empty Guiness cans on the floor in front of me. What – you thought this column WASN’T true to its title?!?! I talked about Paul Posluszny yesterday and there are plenty more like him on the waiver wire – young guys who may not seem like anything special, but fit the Jaguar formula, have plenty of tread on the tires, and can do what linebackers are supposed to do: run fast, hit hard, and I’m sure Del Rio would throw in some things like shed blocks, wrap up, set the edge, etc.
A quick glance at the UFA linebackers shows that there are plenty of inside and outside LB’s in this mold and I think Gene should be able to get one in a Jaguars uniform at a decent price. Here’s a list of some guys who have played/can play 4-3 MLB or WLB (Morrison and Durant’s positions, respectively) available in free agency this year (nonwithstanding franchise tag): Chad Greenway, David Harris, Stephen Tulloch, Paul Posluszny, Rock McIntosh, Thomas Davis, and Barrett Ruud (who sounds like he may want a lot of money). Anyone on that list you wouldn’t like in our LB corps?
From today’s Ask Vic:
"Lance from Jacksonville, FLHow far do you think Da’Quan Bowers will fall in this draft?"
"Vic: If he can erase his recent workout results with a considerably better personal workout, he’ll start to climb again. I have no doubt that teams that have interest in him are busy trying to acquire information on Bowers’ arthrocopic knee surgery in January that’s believed to have caused him to run poorly. Teams want to know they’re not buying damaged goods. If there’s reason to believe he’ll make a full recovery, then there will come a point at which Bowers’ talent will be too good to pass up; that’s when risk/reward favors reward. Willis McGahee is the classic example. He sustained a catastrophic knee injury in the final game of his college career. He probably would’ve been a top-five pick had he not been injured. Even still, he was selected 23rd overall in the 2003 draft because at that point he was too good to pass up."
Zoltan had a feeling that Bowers or Amakumara might slide well past where they were *supposed* to go and slip into the unhesitating arms of the Jaguars. I’m thinking that in Bowers’ case #1 – it’s not as bad as everyone in the media is making it sound right now and/or #2 – someone pulls the trigger before #16. The guy was in much of the first overall talk and all over the top 5 of mocks before news of his arthroscopic surgery; Willis McGahee’s leg was snapped in half like breaking a glass pimp cane over a mofo’s domepiece. That being said, here are the guys I see actually taking a skid: Blaine Gabbert (not too far, but see him escaping the top 5), Nick Fairley, and Cam Jordan I see falling down to the Jags. If Gene takes him, we’ll find out April 28th.
– Andrew Hofheimer