Jason Babin Helping Jaguars
By Luke Sims
As the Jaguars continue to play for pride, Jason Babin has begun to show that he’s worth keeping no matter who is GM after the season. Babin finished the game against the New York Jets with two tackles and a sack fumble. It may not be the flashiest play, but he is already making progress in a defensive scheme that has yielded little results for other ends Jeremy Mincey, Austen Lane, Andre Branch, and John Chick.
Babin is having a down year with 6.5 sacks and three fumbles, but he is making the rest of the Jaguars look like they are: mediocre.
It is rare that the Jags have a premier player on their roster and Babin is the closest they have had at defensive end since Aaron Kampman. Kampman had injury problems, however, and Babin has an opportunity to really help the Jaguars. Babin is 32 years old and should have a couple more good years left in him to show the team how it’s done at defensive end. The pass rush needs a leader, and it could very well be Babin.
Worst case scenario, I think Babin provides a good measuring stick for the Jags. If the rest of the defensive ends aren’t playing near his level then it’s pretty obvious that the talent isn’t what we thought we had. Jeremy Mincey – one tackle on Sunday – for example, pales in comparison to Babin right now despite an eight sack season last year.
The Jaguars desperately need better talent on this roster to gauge the talent they bring in. It’s not enough to be a standout on a terrible team, the Jags need their players to be standouts on whatever team they could be playing for. In that respect, Jason Babin and his strip sack is helping the Jaguars and could be for some time.
– Luke N. Sims
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