Jaguars Training Camp: What we have learned so far

After two weeks of Jaguars training camp and a preseason game with the Ravens on Thursday, this team is beginning to take shape.

That was quick. It seems like the Jacksonville Jaguars just took the field for training camp and now the team is preparing for its first preseason game in Baltimore. The team and the Ravens will hold joint practices in preparation for the game on the road.

There has been plenty to see and as head coach Doug Marrone said on more than one occasion as he has met with the media, he is pleased with the progress being made on both sides of the ball. That progress should be even better now that Yannick Ngakout is in camp.

Like 31 other teams doing the same thing as the Jaguars, there is still plenty of room for improvement. Players are stepping up, showing how competitive they are. Some non-drafted rookies are staking a claim to the 53-man roster and the coaching staff is implementing a new offense that should score more points than 2018.

We all know that won’t be too difficult.

Here are a few observations from the past two weeks.

DJ Chark is a better player this season – At least so far. The second-round pick out of LSU last season looks like he has a better grasp of the offense and is catching the football better in camp. That’s a good thing.

DJ Chark made an impression on the Jaguars as a special teams gunner. Now, he is going to be a possible starter this season if he continues to do the things he has shown since the start of OTAs. With his length at 6-foot-4 and his speed on the field, the Jaguars may have found another deep threat in the passing game to go along with Dede Westbrook.

Yannick Ngakoue is ready to go – It did not take long for Yannick Ngakoue to get on the field and play football. The morning he arrived at the Jaguars facility and out on the pads, he was ready to go.

That’s a great thing for the Jaguars and a bad thing for team opponents. Ngakoue said he will play like he always does, with an intensity that few players have. While a new contract has not been worked out, the fourth-year player is still in the final season of his rookie deal.

It will provide more motivation to show just how good he is on the field. Ngakoue has 29.5 sacks in three seasons. I suspect this will be the best year for the defensive end in a Jaguars uniform.

Nick Foles may be the best quarterback the Jaguars have ever had – No disrespect to Mark Brunell, but Nick Foles throws what might be the best deep pass in Jaguars history. The free agency signee and leader of the Jaguars offense has stepped on the practice field and shown he can be something this team hasn’t had in a long time.