The Jacksonville Jaguars

[RockStar]

Offense gets you to the Super Bowl.
Defense wins it.

[duvaldude08]

You guys need to get this 'slot' receiver pre-conception out of your heads.  It's just the normal place where they line up.  No matter where he lined up last year, Thomas was our #1.  V-Jack is considered a #1 and he's typically flanked by another reciever which makes him the.........  _______ Reciever.  Sorry it's just a pet peeve.

Robinson will make Thomas better just by being on the field - the opposing D, while not having to scheme specifically for him (yet) will still probably roll their #1 to his side just to account for his speed.  This leaves Thomas on the other side or, yes, in the slot, but covered instead by the opposing team's #2 or an LB.  If Chastin West or Cecil Shorts can start pulling the #2 to covering them, that leaves a LB or SS to cover Thomas - which means he's more open more of the time - if that's the case, then we start calling his number on plays - it's pretty simple really.

Yeah your right. I watched the "Evening with the coaches video" And Mularkey even said that he uses a X's and O's scheme. And that Robinson has not been assigned a #1, #2, or #3 slot . I had to learn also that there is no person that is deemed a slot receiver, its really about who fits best where.

[Shwaz]

The point of my post is our D went from #30 to #6  in one season, and that is a drastic improvement with more to come.

We could have had the #1 D, but we still finished 5-11. Who cares about the rank of the D, if you cannot translate it to wins. I'd rather have had the D of New Orleans or the Giants which were not good, and their Offense. In the NFL you need to have a better Offense to win. So I am the opposite for your argument, I don't care if our D is number one, I want the number one offense, and Smith has yet to prove he can build the number one offense in the NFL.

We still have major question marks at WR. If Mike Thomas starts at anything other than a slot receiver then that will be a huge mistake. Hopefully Robinson will end up being a solid #2 and my wish is that we find a gem in the draft that can be our clear #1 receiver. But at this point, we don't have anyone close to being a #1 right now.

Thomas is a #3 receiver, I agree with Robinson, hopefully #2, but we need a Jimmy Smith go to guy, we have not had one in years and for Gabbert to develop, he needs someone he can rely on when the game is on the line.  Jimmy was awesome with the game on the line.

You're missing Dudes point... Whether or not INYO, offense is more important than defense... GS made huge strides in upgrading the overall defense year over year which means he is capable of upgrading the offense as well.

And how can you say the Giants don't have a good defense?! They have arguably the most relentless pass rush in the NFL!  Maybe if the Saints had a better defense they could've stopped Alex Smith from running the ball into the endzone with the game on the line?

I wish people could understand that Gene Smith can't manufacture players. If a position of need isn't available in FA or the market price is skewed in FA or the draft order puts us out reach.. you just have to wait. I'm confident that Gene will upgrade the WR position and the overall offense. I'm also confident that a lot of the other teams are hoping we let him go so that they can scoop him up.

[mtraininjax]

Offense gets you to the Super Bowl.

Well then, by god, let's get there and stop tooling around!

Why is that everytime we try to have a somewhat decent conversation about the team, you have to chime in and bring it back down? Listen, we get by now that you hate Gene Smith and you think the team sucks. We get that you are a season ticket holder and we even know how much you tickets cost. Do us a favor and go away, negative ninne! If you know so much about NFL football and talent evaluation, you need to switch occupations.

Are you really a season ticket holder? I mean someone with as much passion about the team would surely not diss another passionate fan and fellow season ticket holder. I plan to stay and ride the conversation, cause its fun. Its obvious to me that you really don't like someone telling you the opposite of what you say. So I plan to stay and stir the pot. The Defense sucks with Smith in charge and 5-11 is the result of the sucky defense.

GS made huge strides in upgrading the overall defense year over year which means he is capable of upgrading the offense as well.

The scoreboard and the record do not equal your broad statement. Why bother stating he has done anything but turn oxygen into carbon dioxide? That for sure you can state!

[mtraininjax]

And for you stats guys, info straight from the NFL site, no tooling around with these stats from momma:

The Patriots had the worst defense in the AFC last year, 2011, giving up 411 yards per game.  And they made the SUPER BOWL with the WORST defense in the AFC. Conversely the Jags had the 5th best defense in the AFC, and we all know what the Jags did in the offseason.

The Pats gave up 342 total points, just a few more than the Jags at 329. So was our Defense really that good, or was the offense really that BAD. So who really cares what we do in the offseason to ramp up the Defense, it DOES NOT matter in this league to have a GREAT defense, if you cannot score and put points on the board, you will always be 5-11.

By the way, The Patriots also had the BEST offense in the AFC for 2011, scoring 543 points AND GUESS WHO WAS LAST, the Jags with 243 points.

Point being, FIX the OFFENSE. Same message year after year after year....

By the way for 2011, the Giants were 13th in the NFC in total defense, Saints were 12th. And they BOTH made it to the playoffs. Again, who cares about great D when you can't score and win games?

[Non-RedNeck Westsider]

I plan to stay and ride the conversation, cause its fun. Its obvious to me that you really don't like someone telling you the opposite of what you say. So I plan to stay and stir the pot. The Defense sucks with Smith in charge and 5-11 is the result of the sucky defense.

I'll be your huckleberry.

The only bright spot we had last year was our D, so while your just egging on DD, let's try to keep some semblance of a fact based argument discussion.

I guess you could say 5-11 is the result of a sucky defense, but you can't pin that on our team last year.  5-11 was the result of an inept offense.

[Shwaz]

Quote
GS made huge strides in upgrading the overall defense year over year which means he is capable of upgrading the offense as well.

The scoreboard and the record do not equal your broad statement. Why bother stating he has done anything but turn oxygen into carbon dioxide? That for sure you can state!

The winner of our division gave up 50 less points, isn't that the real measuring stick for the Defense? It matters in wins and losses, which to me as the season ticket holder is the difference between me paying for seats this year and next. Without a pass rush, our D will surely suffer again this year. No matter how good the offense is, I still think we have major issues with our front 4 on D.

So I am the opposite for your argument, I don't care if our D is number one, I want the number one offense, and Smith has yet to prove he can build the number one offense in the NFL.

You're all over the road here. Bottom line - every team needs balance. GS improved our defense - I believe he will improve our offense and balance us out overall. It may not happen next year but I believe it's coming.

Taking a further look at our offense you'll see that we do have have some bright spots to build on. MJD hold the rushing title - Marcadees is 1 year removed from the Pro Bowl. We have a young QB with a golden arm that needs more time & experience before we can truly evaluate him at the position. We also have a lot of young players that are developing. Who knows... we may already have the next Jimmy Smith waiting in the wings.

I am a season ticket holder BTW - I've had seats now since I was 23 years old. A losing record, poor offensive production and player acquisition never factor in renewing my tickets. The product I'm buying is the game itself... to watch the best players both home & away compete 10 times a year right in front of my eyes. No home town kid or 0-16 season will ever change that.

[mtraininjax]

NRW - OK, my issue is not with the people on the board, its with them using that thing between their ears. The Patriots proved in the AFC and the Giants proved in the NFC, last year, 2011, that you can have a mediocre or worse defense and WIN your division, even the Super Bowl. I agree the offense was inept, but we added more Defensive players in Free Agency than Offensive players? What the heck?

The NFL is a league about offense, and without a good offense, I don't care how amazing the defense, the odds are extremely against getting to a super bowl, let alone winning one. It may have been the way the NFL Championship was played back in the day of leatherheads, but not anymore.

You're all over the road here. Bottom line - every team needs balance. GS improved our defense - I believe he will improve our offense and balance us out overall. It may not happen next year but I believe it's coming.

Being all over the road is the nature of the beast, too many discussions for one board. I disagree, not every team needs balance, but they do need the best offense they can get on the field. For far too long, the Del Rio era, the team has been about defense, defense, defense. We had 1 good year in the Del Rio era. Adding more defensive players is not the answer, the league has changed. Sure it would be great to have a stud DE, but he's not going to land you in the Super Bowl, and that is the goal of every team, to get to the Super Bowl, every year. Those who do year after year, have great offenses with lots of weapons.

Forget the great defense, build a great offense Gene Smith, it will fill the seats at the stadium.

[Shwaz]

But you just reference the Patriots having the best offense& a poor defense and still losing the Super Bowl. You also noted that the Giants were more balanced without having a top ranked offense and did win the Super Bowl. 

Unless I missing something... non of the previous comments are meant to imply that since the defense has been upgraded the team is all set. Everyone knows where we finished and that improvements need to be made. Referencing the improvements on D are just that. It's provides substance to the argument that our team lead by GS is getting better and that he has earned the right to continue.

Now you're saying abandon the defense? Seriously? I agree that the field is tipped to the offensive side of the ball but the overall direction should be Throw the Ball - Rush the Passer.

[Non-RedNeck Westsider]

NRW - OK, my issue is not with the people on the board, its with them using that thing between their ears. The Patriots proved in the AFC and the Giants proved in the NFC, last year, 2011, that you can have a mediocre or worse defense and WIN your division, even the Super Bowl. I agree the offense was inept, but we added more Defensive players in Free Agency than Offensive players? What the heck?

We added 2 on the offense - Robinson & Henne

We added 1 on defense - Ross.

The others that you're thinking about was just us resigning our own.  We resigned some offensive guys, too.

I don't understand how you can keep calling the Giants D 'bad'.  They have what every other team wants - a relentless pass rush.

[Adam W]

A Jaguar with colors of teal, black and gold are FAR better than a fish with Orange and Green colors?!! 

You've (almost) got me there. I'm not crazy about the colors, but I guess I just have learned to accept them. I've never bought a jersey, though, because I really don't like them 

[comncense]

I KINDA agree with mtrainjax. No matter how great your defense is, if your offense is always putting them in the position of getting back on the field after 3 and out's, they are going to get worn out and tired. I'm sure someone can pull up the stats, but I'm sure our defense was on the field WAYYYY more than our offense was on the field. A great defense can only stop a powerful offense only so many times during a game. The offense has to pull their weight too. I think we can all agree that our offense was not pulling their weight last year.

So if we field the same type of team as we did last year, it's crazy to expect different results. The reality of the matter is we added 3 backup players through free agency this year. Matt Moore might've been a better QB in Miami than Henne. However Henne is light years better than our backup options that we've had the past 3 seasons or so. Robinson and Ross I do have hope for. Our season I truly believe will be based on how good of a draft we have.

And really I find it hard to believe that you guys would think that there's not a reason Mike Thomas' stats went down after he was moved to lining up as a 1 or 2. Mike Thomas is 5'8" 198 pounds. Take any decent CB and they will jam Mike Thomas off of the line all day. He excelled in the slot because most of the time he was lined up off of the LOS and had the speed and quickness to beat jams and get open.

[Adam W]

How does "Jaguars" sound like a kickball team name?  I know I'm biased and all, but I don't get this at all.

That's just a personal thing, I wouldn't expect you to agree. Maybe it's the alliteration or the fact that Jaguars aren't really endemic to Jax or have any real relationship to the city. I would've thought a more creative name would've been better. That said, I have no suggestions.

[Wacca Pilatka]

How does "Jaguars" sound like a kickball team name?  I know I'm biased and all, but I don't get this at all.

That's just a personal thing, I wouldn't expect you to agree. Maybe it's the alliteration or the fact that Jaguars aren't really endemic to Jax or have any real relationship to the city. I would've thought a more creative name would've been better. That said, I have no suggestions.

As I understand it, Jaguars won the name contest for the team since no other pro sports team had it (other than Latin American pro soccer teams), few college teams had it, and because the Jacksonville Zoo has an extensive history of successful jaguar breeding that long predates the football team.

The other candidates were Sharks, Panthers, and Stingrays.  I think we got the best end of the deal given those choices. 

[mtraininjax]

We added 2 on the offense - Robinson & Henne. We added 1 on defense - Ross. The others that you're thinking about was just us resigning our own.  We resigned some offensive guys, too. I don't understand how you can keep calling the Giants D 'bad'.  They have what every other team wants - a relentless pass rush.

Well, for the sake of others, I like to be thorough, so that I may be called all sorts of wicked names, in fact since 11/30 last year, we have added (either from practice squad, off waivers, or free agency, or resigned) 9 players on Defense (Mincey, Mathis, Allen, Mosley, Ross, McBride, Franklin, Irwin, and Trent). Then only 6 on offense (Whimper, Robinson, Balbridge, Cloherty, Henne, and Price). So if you love Defense, we have been loading up with Defensive players.

From the Times Union:,

Receiver and backup quarterback were two positions the Jaguars wanted to upgrade in free agency. Smith said another receiver and a pass-rusher are still on the agenda in either free agency or the draft. “There’s a couple of other [pass rushers] out there and a couple of guys in the draft,” Smith said. “The position isn’t as strong this year in the draft as it was last year so there’s still a chance to get another guy [in free agency.] So we’ll see how that plays out.”

Based on his track record, I don't know that he would not give up the WR for a pass rusher. He does love Defense.

Here is Smith's track record, broken down by Vito Stellino of the Times Union,   http://jacksonville.com/opinion/blog/401269/vito-stellino/2012-03-13/gene-smith-s-free-agent-track-record