SB Nation - Paul Smith

Bye Paul, Hello Boeckman

Jonathan Loesche — Sun, 30 Aug 2009 18:23:00 -0000

P.S. Thanks to viator for originally posting the link about this.

Source

The Jacksonville Jaguars signed rookie quarterback Todd Boeckman and waived first-year quarterback Paul Smith today.

Boeckman, 6-5, 243, was originally signed by the Jaguars on June 17 and was waived on July 31. He was a two-year letterman at Ohio State where he played in 27 games, completing 255 of 402 passes for 3,041 yards and 31 touchdowns. He served as team captain as a senior and started the first three games. He earned All-Big Ten honors as a junior as he threw for 2,379 yards and 25 touchdowns and led the conference with a 148.04 passing efficiency.

A native of St. Henry, Ohio, Boeckman was a four-year starter at St. Henry High School where he threw for 7,021 yards and 64 touchdowns. He earned all-state honors in football, basketball and baseball. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree in consumer affairs in March of 2008.

Smith signed with the Jaguars as a rookie free agent in 2008 and spent the majority of the season on the club’s practice squad. He played in two of three preseason games this year.

Make no mistake about it, Paul was stinking up the place when he was in the last two preseason games. I wish him the best, but it became increasingly clear that he simply couldn't cut it in the NFL. It makes me wonder just why there was ever a competition between him and Bouman for the #2 spot. *Sees a ball batted at the line of scrimmage* Oh yeah, that's why.

Boeckman certainly isn't going to be a #2 quarterback at this stage of his career. He'll most likely end up on the practice squad and ride out the season there barring injury. That still leaves a hole for a dependable back up in the event that Garrard gets injured, which brings me to...

Everyone's favorite trade target Tyler Thigpen stunk up Arrowhead stadium last night. If nothing else, this means it might be easier for the Jaguars to get him if that is the case.

Poll

What is the most you would offer the Chiefs for Thigpen?

4th round pick

26 votes

5th round pick

109 votes

6-7th round pick

93 votes

One of those horrible sweaters your aunt sent you for Christmas that you never wore

167 votes

395 votes | Poll has closed

Philadelphia Eagles win preseason thriller 33-32 over Jaguars

JasonB — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 03:52:24 -0000

More photos » by Mel Evans - AP

3 months ago: Philadelphia Eagles running back Marcus Mailei, left, dives for a touchdown as Jacksonville Jaguars linebacker Thomas Williams and cornerback Pete Ittersagen defend during the third quarter of a preseason NFL football game, Thursday, Aug. 27, 2009, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Mel Evans)

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Yes It doesn't count, but that was still a pretty fun end to a game. Down 12 with 12 minutes left Kevin Kolb led the Eagles on three straight scoring drives, the last of which ended in a go ahead David Akers FG with 15 seconds left in the game. It gave the Eagles their first win in preseason and dropped the Jaguars to 0-3.

It was a big night for Kolb, whose last game action was last years' devastating loss to the Baltimore Ravens. Even though it was against backups in a preseason game, Kolb showed poise and looked very sharp with his passes. Not to steal Bob Q's thunder, but I'll say "stock up" for Kolb tonight.

Now to the important stuff. The first team offense and defense. It was an odd night with two flukey touchdowns that put the Jaguars up early. The first came on a play where Jacksonville had driven down to the red zone and Asante Samuel put a devastating(and probably illegal helmet to helmet) hit on a Jags WR, who dropped the ball on the one yard line. The Eagles players stood around as if it was an incomplete pass, but Torry Holt made a heads up play to pick up the ball and walk it in for a TD. While it was somewhat of a "fluke" play, the fact that the Jags had driven that far down the field and were likely to score anyway was not. Other than that drive though, the Eagles first team defense was much improved from the first two preseason games. The return of Trent Cole meant the return of the pressure as the front four repeatedly hurried and hit Jags' QB David Garrard.

The secondary also played well, led by Asante Samuel... who seemed to have an extra something in his play tonight. Samuel was out hitting like a linebacker, picked off a pass, and made a very nice strip on a Jags' WR that was initially ruled a fumble. Asante certainly seemed like he was up for filling whatever leadership void might exist on the defense in the absence on Brian Dawkins.

We get to the offense after the jump.

The offense is another story. We'll get to Vick later.... First, they generally moved the ball well. In a stat line that was all too reminiscent of last season, they were better than the Jags' offense in pretty much every conceivable stat other than the score. They moved the ball, but failed to score TDs in the red zone. In the red zone, they settled for two FGs and had one fumble returned 92 yards for a TD. The fumble came on a swing pass to Lesean McCoy that the Eagles and most of the Jags thought fell incomplete, but since the pass wasn't thrown forward it was a live ball. Jags' backup LB Brian Iwuh made a heads up play to pick up the live ball and return it all the way for a TD. No excuses though, it was a bad play and McNabb & McCoy certainly share the blame.

The second half opened with a fumble finally going the Eagles way. Broderick Bunkley tore the ball out of the grip of Chauncey Washington and Quintin Demps returned it to put the Eagles in good scoring position. Lesean McCoy ended up scoring after bouncing a run outside and beating two Jaguar defenders to the pylon for a TD. The offensive starters would score another TD on a 4 yard McNabb pass to rookie Marcus Mailei in what ended up being the starters' final drive of the night. The starting offense left having put up 20 points on the board in a little less than three quarters.

Things started tough for the second team when Kevin Kolb was called for an intentional grounding on his first pass which awarded the Jaguars a safety. From there on though, the Eagles reserves thoroughly outplayed the Jaguars' second string and ended up coming from 12 points down to win the game.

Finally, let's get to Vick.

First, I think that the experimenting Andy Reid did with him in the first quarter threw McNabb and the offense off a bit. The team clearly moved better and McNabb looked sharper when Vick wasn't being subbed in every two or three plays. It makes sense that the offense would be somewhat out of sync if they're running gimmick plays once every 4 downs. The experimenting made it hard for me to really evaluate how the first team offense really looked in that first quarter.

Vick himself looked as about as good as expected. Physically he seems like he's in pretty good shape. He didn't appear a step slow, he looked quite comfortable out there, and executed the few things he was asked to do well. That said, he wasn't asked to do much. He did appear in the wildcat formation with McNabb lining up as a WR and tossed a few shovel passes to Lesean McCoy. He threw one beautiful pass to Hank Baskett, which really showed that he still has a cannon for an arm... and ran one designed run play that really wasn't blocked well and left him with no where to go.

So while Vick looked fine, he really wasn't asked to do much.

A few more random thoughts before we wrap this thing up.

- While Jeremy Maclin still didn't show much as a return man, he did play noticeably better as a WR in the first half where he caught 4 passes for 53 yards. Still a work in progress.

- I noticed that rookie Macho Harris started at free safety and not Quintin Demps. Demps had one poor play where he flung himself at TE Marcedes Lewis and bounced off him, rather than make the smart play to wrap him up. Plays like that might be a reason he didn't get the start... He did grab a fumble though and make a decent return with it, although he attempted an ill advised lateral that thankfully went out of bounds. Smart play to pick up the ball and run, bonehead play to lateral it.

- Speaking of second year men having up and down games... DE Bryan Smith made a really nice interception after a Paul Smith pass was tipped, but later drew a pretty stupid and obvious roughing the passer penalty.

- Can anyone make an argument that Jason Avant is at least the second best WR on this team? Avant again caught nearly everything that went near him, ran perfect routes, and constantly got himself open. He was the best WR on the field tonight. With Kevin Curtis being banged up, Maclin still catching up, Reggie being Reggie... should Jason Avant be starting on this team come opening day? You can't say he hasn't earned it.

- Both ex-Patriot starting corners tonight played well. Asante Samuel we've already discussed... but Ellis Hobbs played the run very well tonight and managed to knock down a pass as well. He certainly helped to redeem himself after a rough outing against the Colts.

- Moises Fokou led the team in tackles for the second straight game and saw some time with the first team at middle linebacker.

- 4 FGs for David Akers tonight including the game winner. After two missed against New England it was nice to see him bounce back with a strong night.

Quick thought on Tavaris Jackson

Jonathan Loesche — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 12:06:24 -0000

More photos » by Hannah Foslien - AP

Brett Favre's signing means Tavaris Jackson (7) is likely going to find his way out of Minnesota.

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Since Brett Favre's signing in Minnesota, there has been some rumblings that Tavaris Jackson would find himself as the odd man out in Minnesota. Jaguar fans have since mentioned his name as a possible candidate to sign for the shaky back up quarterback spot. However, I think that would be a foolish move, whether by trade or claiming Jackson off the waiver wire.

Jackson has unimpressive career numbers. He has a completion percentage below 60%(58.4) and has thrown almost as many interceptions (18) as touchdowns (20.) Not to mention he was in a quarterback "competition" with another career mediocre QB, Sage Rosenfels.

Why does anyone think this would be anymore than Cleo Lemon 2.0? The guy has amazing athletic ability, but has never shown that can translate into being an NFL quarterback. Paul Smith has shown an amazing amount of progress this offseason that can't be understated. Why should the team stunt his growth now?

However, perhaps the most damning thing against Jackson is that maybe he just isn't cut out to be a NFL QB. Check out what our comrades over at the Daily Norsemen have to say about him?

His stat line was impressive: 12/15, 202 yards, two touchdowns. People are understandably pleased with how Tarvaris Jackson performed against the Chiefs. After a tough-to-watch preseason debut in Indianapolis, the rebound he pulled off on Friday night was surprising. Or was it?

Let's take a look at the difference between this week's game and last week's game. Last week, T-Jack was in the middle of a quarterback competition. This week, the quarterback competition had been thrown out the window. Last week, the pressure was on him to excel, especially after Sage Rosenfels opened the game with two stellar drives. This week, that pressure was gone -- there was no quarterback he needed to keep pace with.

In other words, Friday's game reinforced something we already knew about T-Jack: He has difficulty handling the pressure associated with being a starter. But when that pressure's off, he's an undeniably solid quarterback.

Do we really need to sign another mediocre but highly athletic and expensive back up QB? I thought the days of Shack Harris were over.

-Jonathan Loesche

Game Preview: Preseason Game 1 Jacksonville Jaguars @ Miami Dolphins

Jonathan Loesche — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 14:05:27 -0000

Miami Dolphins (0-0)

Preseason

Jacksonville Jaguars (0-0)

VS.

Date:	August 17th, 2009	Location:	Miami Gardens, FL
Time:	7:30 pm EST	Stadium:	LandShark Stadium
TV:	CBS/Local	Favorite:	Dolphins -3
Radio:	Click Here	Over/Under:	31.5
Weather:	High 73, clear	Injury Report:	Coming Soon
SBN Coverage:	The Phinsider	Coverage Map	Local

What's this, light at the end of the tunnel? Grandma? Oh wait, it's just the start of the preseason.Either way, it's still great to finally see some live football after months of making mountains out of mole hills and endlessly debating the finer points of Gene Smith's moves. The first preseason game will finally allow the team to see all of it's offseason moves in action, and provide a glimpse of how the team will do.

The Dolphins were the surprise team of the year, going from 1-15 to winning the AFC East in 2008, reintroducing the NFL to the Wildcat offense, and lost to Baltimore in the Wild Card round. This year the Dolphins will now be playing with expectations, just as the Jaguars were in 2008. Last year's preseason game for the Dolphins was a harbinger of the 2008 season for the Jaguars, will this year provide a similar preview?

What To Watch For: Jacksonville Jaguars

1.The Offensive Line: Last year's game against the Dolphins began to show the struggles the offensive line would have all year. This year, newcomers Tra Thomas, Eben Britton, and rededicated Tony Pashos look to re-solidify the Jags line. A good performance from the first team line Monday night would be a great sight to see. In addition, a good performance from Tra Thomas would be more leverage for the Jaguars with Eugene Monroe.

2. Quarterbacks: David Garrard has been hit or miss in training camp. He'll make the kind of pass he did in 2007, then let a ball sail on him that would get intercepted. David has to begin to show that 2007 wasn't a one hit wonder. Paul Smith and Todd Bouman are now in a competition for the back up job. Smith was impressive at the scrimmage, and has dominated Bouman through out camp. If Smith can show this at full speed, then he'll go from the practice squad to having the back up job.

3. The Secondary: There might not be more competition on the team than in the defensive backfield. Third round pick Derek Cox has had his share of wow and face palm moments, which is to be expected of a talented rookie corner. Brian Williams has continued to show he is one of the best all around players on the team. Sean Considine has elevated himself from back up/special teamer status with his play in camp. Gerald Alexander has caught up to Reggie Nelson, or has Nelson fallen to Alexander?

4. Defensive line: The D-line will be the story for the Jaguars this preseason. As the Jags d-line goes, I believe the team will go. Derrick Harvey and Quentin Groves are looking to show why they were essentially the Jaguars entire 2008 draft. Terrance Knighton has been solid in training camp. Can he make his way to be a starter? Will John Henderson even show up?

What to watch for: Miami Dolphins

1. Chad Henne: Henne was the Dolphins second round pick in 2008. While the Phins scored big by signing Chad Pennington, how much more does he have? Pennington never showed he could take a team to the next level with the Jets, and I doubt he will with the Dolphins. Henne will see a good amount of time against the Jaguars, and he could begin to make a case for being the Dolphins QB of the future.

2.Pat White: Another QB taken in the second round, White shot up draft boards after he showed that he could be a viable QB option in the NFL. As a rookie ,however, he'll be used in Miami's Wildcat offense. Expect to see a few uses of the Wildcat with White at the helm Monday night.

3. Ernest Wilford: Everyone's favorite ex-Jaguar may soon be an ex-Dolphin as well. Wilford has been struggling since signing with the Dolphins in 2008 and needs a good showing in the preseason to stay on the roster. Collin suggested the Jaguars resign Wilford if the Dolphins cut him, but do we want a guy who hasn't shown anything in two years?

4. Ricky Williams: Williams is still one of the most fascinating players in the NFL. I almost ordered a Toronto Argonauts jersey just because I found Williams situation so entertaining. Williams is currently backing up Ronnie Brown, but he is still a former Heisman Trophy winner. Williams would've been an all-time great if his favorite time of day wasn't 4:20.

Player On The Hot Seat

Quentin Groves, DE, Jacksonville

Groves needs a good preseason in the worst way. Groves was physically dominated through out last year and the whispers that he was too small to be a 4-3 DE became statements of fact. He then proceeded to become a workout warrior this offseason to show that he could compete in the NFL. Instead, Tra Thomas might as well have been the Berlin Wall during training camp. Groves has had a lackluster camp and may find himself on the chopping block if he doesn't show why he was a 2nd round pick.

Prediction

7-7 tie (When the first team players leave)

24-20 Jaguars

Poll

What do you want to see most in the first preseason game?

First team dominate

125 votes

Jaguars win

41 votes

Injury free game

184 votes

Win in the trenches

137 votes

487 votes | Poll has closed

Camp Battle 2009: Quarterbacks (and a comment on Michael Vick)

Jonathan Loesche — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 20:25:05 -0000

More photos » by Nick Wass - AP

Todd Bouman is currently the Jaguars back up quarterback. If Garrard goes down, can he be counted on to lead the Jaguars or should the team look to bring in another arm for camp?

Browse more photos »

It wouldn't be the post-Mark Brunell Jaguars if questions about the quarterback position weren't being asked heading into training camp. The 2009 Jaguars have to answer them in bunches this year. Is David Garrard a one hit wonder? Can Todd Bouman be asked to do more than hand off to MJD in the event Garrard gets hurt? Will either Paul Smith or Todd Boeckman be more than practice squad caliber? Should the Jaguars bring in Michael Vick?

All of these questions need to be answered at some point, and their answers may well have the biggest impact on the Jaguars not only this season, but down the line as well.

David Garrard

Were David Garrard's 4th down heroics in Pittsburgh simply the final note of his one hit wonder season?

I'll spare recapping 2007 and 2008; what we want to know is can Garrard lead this team back to the playoffs. The common complaint about Garrard was that he regressed in 2008 compared to 2007. What do the numbers say?

	Yards Per Game	Completions Per Game	Quarterback Rating	Interceptions
2007	209	17	102.4	4
2008	226	21	81.7	13

While Garrard's completions and yards went up, his QB rating took a huge hit. This can be explained because of the Jaguars lack of a running threat compared to last year. Garrard had to be a one man show in 2008, and he did an admirable job considering the receivers he was throwing to.In addition, Garrard was the most hit QB in the league last year. A product of the Jaguars O-line and having to throw constantly from behind, that is never a good indicator. Overall though, I don't think Garrard's 2008 was as bad as others are making it out to be.

Heading into 2009, Garrard has to have a career year for all of the right reasons. Early reports are the Garrard is already making Torry Holt is "Go to" guy for 2009. If he can get in a groove with Holt and get some protection, he'll have a good year regardless.

BCC 2009 Projections
Yards: 3,400
Touchdowns: 19

Interceptions:9

QB Rating:91.4

Todd Bouman

Bouman should have been the Jaguars back up quarterback last year. However, thanks to a Shack Harris special, he was cut in favor of high priced Cleo Lemon. What does Bouman bring to the table? Not much on paper. Bouman only has six starts in his career and hasn't done anything to instill any confidence he can be effective for a 2-3 game stretch. If nothing else, Bouman represents a known commodity that will entrench him at the #2 quarterback.

Todd Boeckman

An Ohio State product who lost his starting job to mega-recruit Terrell Pryor, Boeckman wasn't much more than a "Game Manager" at the college level. He'll provide another arm in camp and probably not much more. He'll be competiting with Paul Smith for a practice squad spot.

Paul Smith

A BCC favorite, Smith spent almost the entire season on the Jaguars practice squad. Smith was activated for the final game against Baltimore. Smith's knowledge of the system, and frankly, better skills than Boeckman should get him another round on the practice squad, if not a chance to get on the active roster.

The question of Michael Vick

When Michael Vick was reinstated by Commissioner Roger Goodell, the can of worms that opened on the possible teams that Vick would end up playing for. The Jaguars, despite the record of Clean Gene, have been mentioned as a likely landing spot.

As it's illegal to mention Michael Vick and not say something as to his crime, here is my position. He committed a heinous act and murdered living beings for nothing better than blood sport. That being said, I believe Vick has served his punishment and is now due for a chance at redemption.

Should the Jaguars try to sign Vick? He would bring the Jaguars immense publicity, both good and bad. However, he has had issues prior to the dog fighting charges, such as flipping off the fans following the game. It seems his time in jail has humbled Vick, and I'm sure he'll be hungry to prove he's worth more than the slightly more than minimum deal he will sign.

Do I think the Jaguars will sign him? No. Would I welcome and support the Jaguars signing Vick? Absolutely.

The State of the Position

Let's hope David Garrard doesn't get hurt this season. If Garrard goes down, or proves that he was a one hit wonder, then the Jaguars hopes of a successful season go down with him. While Bouman showed he could come in to relieve Garrard for a short period, I'm not convinced he could come in and lead the Jaguars in a 3 game stretch like Quinn Gray did in 2007.

Boeckman and Smith will fight over the third QB spot, and hopefully in their competition, one can distinguish them self enough to be put on the 53 man roster. Either way, at a minimum, expect a good deal of attention to free agent or rookie quarterbacks by the Jaguars next off season.

-Jonathan

Poll

On a scale of 1-10 (10 being the QB position needs no improvement, 1 being the Jaguars might as well start a back up Arena League QB) how would you rate the Jaguars QB position going into camp?

10

10 votes

9

17 votes

8

72 votes

7

144 votes

6

78 votes

5

72 votes

4

35 votes

3

30 votes

2

11 votes

1

27 votes

496 votes | Poll has closed

Quick Bytes:July 13th, 2009

Jonathan Loesche — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 11:31:12 -0000

High impact from low-key 'V' - Centurions - Starbulletin.com
Great story on how Vince Manuwai got to the NFL and his offseason

Mailbag: On top picks reporting on time - AFC South - ESPN
Kuharsky believes the Jaguars have enough options at tackle to deal with a prolonged holdout by Monroe.In addition, while he loves what Gene Smith is doing, be believes the Jaguars are still a year away from the playoffs.

Key year for Maurice Jones-Drew, David Garrard in Jacksonville - ESPN
Eric Karabell previews the Jacksonville Jaguars from a fantasy perspective and notes there are many question marks, including whether Maurice Jones-Drew can handle the load and whether David Garrard and Torry Holt still have something left.

10 Best offseason moves - STLtoday.com
The Jaguars signing Torry Holt checks in at #8.

jaguars.com | News | Jaguars news | Linebackers at heart of retooling
The Jaguars linebacking corp must now provide the heart of the defense.

Paul Smith battles to keep No. 3 spot
BCC favorite Paul Smith is looking to stay on the Jaguars roster. He is competing with UDFA Todd Boeckman for the #3 spot, or more likely, a practice squad role.

Jacksonville Jaguars' Eugene Monroe Should Take a History Lesson | Bleacher Report
We all know the situation with Derrick Harvey last year. Eugene Monroe should learn from that and the Jaguars front office won't be the ones to blink in a long holdout.

Poll

If need be, could the Jaguars deal with Monroe holding out?

Yes, Tra Thomas still has something in the tank

175 votes

Maybe. I'm not sure

14 votes

No, Monroe is the futre of the position and needs to be in camp on time

59 votes

248 votes | Poll has closed