MVN - Most Valuable Network

Jags receiving corps could become quagmire for front office

It was not that long ago when the Jacksonville Jaguars would have sacrificed a baby lamb, given up their first born child, or made a pact with the devil himself in their quest to find a group of quality receivers to bolster their offensive machinery.  Entering the 2008 preseason, the Jaguars will now be forced to make at least one or two difficult decisions that could send a quality player with potential to be a star off to ply his wares for another team.  The position that the Jaguars are in would normally be an enviable one.  But, each option available to the team has the possibility of providing the Jaguars not only with a great deal of reward, but an equal amount of risk.

This is why coaches and personnel men get paid the way that they do in the National Football League.

There are only a few certainties on the Jaguars current roster where the wide receiving positions are concerned.

By virtue of the contract he signed, Jerry Porter has a secure roster spot, and has been immediately installed as the top receiver on the depth chart.  The same thing is the case for Dennis Northcutt, who signed a contract with the Jaguars last season that will almost certainly lock him into a roster spot.  With his ten touchdowns during the regular season last year, Reggie Williams set a franchise record, and locked up a third spot on the final roster with the possibility of hauling in a new contract depending on what he can accomplish this year.

That leaves two roster spots available for a cast of characters that would be the definition of feast or famine.

• An underachieving but talented Matt Jones.
• A burner with suspect hands in Troy Williamson.
• A diminutive but talented speedster in John Broussard.
• A talented but dinged Mike Walker.
• A group of unknown guys that includes Clyde Edwards, Jeron Harvey, and D’Juan Woods.  These are the players from which a practice squad is built.

How the team maneuvers through this minefield of risk remains to be seen.  The one thing that is certain is that, barring injuries to any one of the key players, the team is going to have a monumentally difficult time trimming the roster down to five or even six receivers.

The first issue that will need to be addressed is what the team intends to do with Matt Jones.  This is a player that has been called out by his teammates and coaches alike for his less than aggressive nature on the field, and the perception of his suspect work ethic.  This is also a player that has the physical tools and athletic ability to be a star in the league if he decides to step up and prove the naysayers wrong.  If Matt is on top of his game, and he can overcome the self-inflicted obstacles in his path, he is a receiver that is practically indefensible. 

The problem with Jones has always been his attitude, and how it impacts his level of consistency on the field.  He was deactivated for a few games last year because of the fact that he simply did not put the effort into earning a spot on the starting roster.  There is no doubt that he has the talent and ability to be a top tier player.  Everything hinges on his desire to take that step. 

Troy Williamson is a player that was brought to Jacksonville to add competition to the wide receiving corps.  Since arriving here, he has reportedly done far more than that by proving to be one of the stars of May and June.  How this will translate to his game with the pads on and contact live remains to be seen.  He came to Jacksonville with the label of a drop artist, leaving too many footballs on the ground when it mattered most.  During his spring and summer practices, he has shown that he is capable of making all of the catches while also providing the Jaguars with a legitimate deep threat. 

However, Jaguar fans are all too familiar with the warriors of mini camp.  They are legendary for putting on clinics from May through August, only to disappear when the hitting was real and the catches mattered.  Cortez Hankton made a career in Jacksonville of hauling in circus style grabs and fingertip catches.  His acrobatics were legendary during training camp.  Unfortunately, when it came to making it on the field when the games were real, Hankton had about as much of an impact on the offensive success of the Jaguars as some middle-aged guy in section 432.

Another player that has the potential to be Mr. May-August is John Broussard.  The one difference with Broussard is that he has actually made a couple of plays when the catches matter.  The only concern about his situation is that his skinny build makes the concerns about his durability a legitimate one.  It was the only real issue that anyone had about him last year leading into the 2007 season.  He made all of the difficult grabs, and showed no regard for himself in putting his body out there to make plays in training camp.  He had a highlight grab in the opening game of the season against Tennessee, pulling in a diving touchdown grab from David Garrard.  Unfortunately, he wound up injured on the play, and he spent a good portion of the rest of the season on the injured list, finishing the season on the IR because of an ankle issue.

Mike Walker is a player that has the potential to be the next Jimmy Smith for this team.  He also has the potential to be a player much like Cortez Hankton, full of talent and ability, but unable to stay healthy enough to get on the field.  The knee issue continues to be a concern in year two of his NFL career.  Additional cleanup surgery was done this past off season to help him recover from the ACL injury he suffered at University of Central Florida in 2005.  However, the extent of that surgery remains a big question mark.  It was initially reported as a simple cleanup procedure.  Then reports began to surface that he had micro fracture surgery on the knee in question.  Subsequently, it was reported that he did not have micro fracture surgery, but a procedure similar to that was performed to rough up the surface of the bone in the injured knee to promote new cartilage growth. 

It was encouraging to see Walker cleared to participate in mini camp, ahead of schedule.  He showed signs of rust, but still proved to be the precise route runner and sure handed receiver that impressed the Jaguars enough to draft him last year.  If he is healthy and ready to compete for a roster spot, he would almost certainly be one of the leading candidates to secure a roster spot. 

Jeron Harvey, D’Juan Woods, and Clyde Edwards would be considered filler for the camp roster.  The odds of any of the three actually competing for a final spot would be heavily weighted against them.  But, with the question marks surrounding the other three receivers vying for those two or possibly three roster spots, the door is wide open for one of these players to jump into the mix to compete for a roster spot.

Harvey and Woods seem to be destined for development making them interesting prospects for the practice squad with an eye on the future. 

Harvey, a local product, has great size, speed, and catching ability.  He simply needs to work on sharpening his receiving skills and route running ability.  He is clearly a raw talent with a great deal of potential. 

Woods, who spent last year on the Jaguars practice squad, is the leading candidate for Mr. Training Camp.  This is another receiver that has the ability to make plays in practice.  He has decent size, and he has enough speed to be a vertical threat.  He also shows great adjustment ability when the ball is in the air.  But, much like the former Mr. Training camp, Cortez Hankton, he tends to disappear in game situations.  This may simply be due to the fact that he is still transitioning to the NFL game.  Again, he appears to be a candidate for the practice squad. 

Clyde Edwards might be in a position to make the roster if he can sell himself as a special team tool.  He is undersized for an NFL receiver at 5′10″.  He was a special team player and receiver at Grambling, so he has proven to be a versatile player.  Jack Del Rio loves players that can prove to be multi-purpose utility guys.  However, the team already has a host of return specialists that they can call upon, including guys like Dennis Northcutt and Maurice Jones-Drew.  So, his path to a roster spot is an uphill battle.  More than likely, he will be one of the revolving door roster spots that will have a different name associated with it before training camp ends.

The Jaguars are in a position to have one of the best wide receiving corps from top to bottom in franchise history.  They are also at risk of making personnel decisions that could result in sending a player that legitimately could help this team achieve their goal of winning a title off to play elsewhere, while retaining a guy that still does not reach his potential. 

This is where coaches and personnel professionals earn their pay. 

This entry was posted on Thursday, June 26th, 2008 at 7:24 am and is filed under Jaguars' Journal. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.