Jacksonville Jaguars: Who is poised to lead the league in a statistical category in 2018?
By Billy Long
The Jacksonville Jaguars have numerous players who could be stat leaders in 2018.
The Jacksonville Jaguars enter 2018 as one of the most talented teams in the NFL. Fresh off an appearance in the AFC championship game, the Jaguars have what it takes to make a return trip, and even take it a step further.
The essential reason Jacksonville is so dangerous is obviously the star power the team has accumulated, with players at the pinnacle of their respective positions in multiple spots on the field.
With that, who on the Jaguars could finish the upcoming season as a stat leader league-wide. Maurice Moton of Bleacher Report predicted the NFL stat leaders for 2018, and says Jalen Ramsey will be number one when it comes to hauling in interceptions:
"Typically, opposing quarterbacks avoid optimistic cornerbacks waiting to snag interceptions in coverage. In that scenario, the defender on the opposite side of the field would see plenty of targets.When staring down the Jacksonville Jaguars defense, quarterbacks looking toward the perimeter must choose to target one of two Pro Bowlers in A.J. Bouye and Jalen Ramsey. They combined for 10 interceptions in the previous season and nearly split the total in half.The All-Pro cornerback also takes pride in locking up and agitating the opponent’s best wide receiver—just ask Bengals pass-catcher A.J. Green. Ramsey’s competitive nature puts him in a great position to create turnovers through the air at the highest rate."
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That initial analysis is spot on by Moton. Last season, quarterbacks for the most part opted to throw away from Ramsey, but quickly found out how talented his counterpart, A.J Bouye, also is on the other side of the field. It’s not that Bouye wasn’t a known commodity entering 2017, but it wasn’t quite clear just how good the defensive back was, and teams viewed throwing to his side a safer alternative.
Boy were they wrong, and now that ease of just throwing away from one star corner doesn’t exist against the Jaguars, and Ramsey should easily be challenged more in 2018.
As mentioned, the All-Pro loves the competition of locking down a number one receiver, and dares teams to throw his way.
Jalen Ramsey is as good as it gets as a shutdown corner in the NFL. With opponents having no safe side to throw to, Ramsey is going to get his opportunities to attack the football, and we have all seen that work out well for the Jacksonville Jaguars. Expect the defensive back to have far more than the five interceptions he collected last season.
Other Jaguars could have easily made the list as well, such as Calais Campbell or Yannick Ngakoue for sacks, Leonard Fournette for rushing yards and/or touchdowns, or Telvin Smith for tackles.