Who will be chosen the Jacksonville Jaguars team captains for 2018?
By Kathy Clark
The selection as one of the team captains in the NFL is not only a honor but a responsibility as well. Captain is an important leadership position and most players enjoy the prestige of selection as captain of the team.
ABOUT THE POSITION OF TEAM CAPTAIN
If you see a player with a letter ‘C’ on the upper right chest (or it can be left) it means that he is designated as a team captain. Also a star is added under the ‘C’ for each year a player is chosen as a captain. Finally, after four years as captain the ‘C’ changes in color to gold.
Additionally each NFL team can have up to six captains. Some teams choose captains for the entire season and others choose them weekly. In general there are two offensive team captains, two defensive team captains, and two special team captains. However some teams have only one in a category, more than two in a category, or have fewer total captains. In addition captains are chosen by a vote of the team or by the coaches.
THE ROLE OF THE TEAM CAPTAINS
To start, team captains are the group on the field during the coin toss. One player is designated as the speaker and calls the coin toss and/or which side of the field the team chooses to defend. The captain also tells the refs the choice on penalty options. Essentially the captain is the spokesperson on the field and communicates for the coach to the referee. Equally important the captain is a leader of his group and facilitates communication between coaches and management and the players.
2017 TEAM CAPTAINS
More from Jacksonville Jaguars News
- Jacksonville Jaguars should welcome Derrick Henry into the kingdom
- Jaguars Rumors: Trent Baalke seems to be getting respect now
- Jaguars News: This division rival might be making a big move
- Former Jacksonville Jaguars S Johnathan Cyprien: “New Profession, Same Standards”
- Jacksonville Jaguars TE Evan Engram officially gets the franchise tag: 3 takeaways
The Jacksonville team-chose captains for last season: First the Jaguars elected Brandon Linder and Marcedes Lewis as offensive team captains. Next, the Jaguars chose Telvin Smith and Paul Posluszny as defensive team captains. Last, Arrelious Benn was special teams captain. Just two of these players remain on the roster for 2018, Linder and Smith.
2018 TEAM CAPTAINS
Lets start with the offense. It is reasonable to assume that Brandon Linder will continue as team captain. Most teams choose the quarterback as a team captain and Blake Bortles served as captain in 2016. His play on the field no doubt lost him the position as captain for 2017. However, it is likely that his 2017 play on the field re-earned the position of 2018 team captain for Bortles. Other possible candidates are Leonard Fournette and Marqise Lee.
Next we look at the defense. Telvin Smith is a returning captain and will likely continue in that role. In addition there are several worthy candidates to replace Posluszny. Calais Campbell is an excellent choice. Either Jalen Ramsey or A.J. Bouye are possibilities as well.
Special teams captain is a wide open position. Kicker Josh Lambo deserves consideration. Another choice could be Corey Grant. In addition, the composition of the special teams may change and another candidate could rise during the preseason.
MY CHOICES