Jacksonville Jaguars: 5 players to watch against the Giants
By Luke Sims
Dec 22, 2013; Jacksonville, FL, USA; Jacksonville Jaguars safety Josh Evans (26) points to the fans during the game against the Tennessee Titans at EverBank Field. Mandatory Credit: Melina Vastola-USA TODAY Sports
3) Josh Evans, safety, Jacksonville Jaguars
Johnathan Cyprien is out for the rest of the preseason, which opens the door for a lot of other players to show why they deserve to be on the roster. Josh Evans is one of those guys for the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Considered to be one of the veterans on the bubble for the Jags, Evans simply hasn’t done enough during his time on the field in the last two years to warrant a guaranteed roster spot. Originally put in at the free safety spot, Evans has been moved over to provide depth behind Cyprien at strong safety in 2015.
Usually a player with 25 starts over the last two seasons isn’t someone a team is thinking about cutting, but Evans has had some really bad stretches of play for the Jaguars during those two seasons. This led the team to bring in rookie James Sample and free agent addition Sergio Brown to man the free safety spot.
Evans has to impress at strong safety in the preseason or he may find he doesn’t have a job any longer.
The tail end of the defense has been week in years past and Evans has been a key member of that unit’s inability to perform.
So, with Cyprien’s injury, we should see plenty of opportunities for Evans to prove that he’s still worth it. While I’m not optimistic, the skills could be there and he could turn in some strong performances to secure his roster spot.
Keep an eye on him as the Jaguars try a number of players at the safety spots during game two of the preseason. Hopefully we see progress, but if we don’t then see who performs better than Evans.
Next: The center battle continues