SB Nation User Blog: ruffdaddy

A few observations from section 210

ruffdaddy — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 02:57:53 -0000

Someday we are going to learn how to prevent games like this from coming down to the wire; this one had no business being close. But no complaints, a win is a win, and there were a lot of things to like about the way we played today. A few random thoughts:

1. Marcedes Lewis is becoming an all-pro caliber tight end. He is a beast of a blocker, and has been good for one major downfield play in each of the last 3 or 4 games. Thank you Shack for leaving us with at least one first round pick who seems worth the price.

2. Our corners played great today. Derek Cox did an amazing job on the best receiver in the league, was disruptive on a couple of pressures and came out of nowhere to make 2 key tackles. I love this kid. TBrack was almost as good with a key breakup and dependable coverage; the silver lining in the dark cloud of Mathis' injury is the emergence of this kid as a viable backup.

3. I read the second half thread when I got home and agree with the comments about Harvey. He doesn't always get there, but the effort is formidable and the disruptions are increasing. I'm not so sold on Groves ... seems to have some Reggie Nelson in him in terms of not always being in the right place. Also agree with comments on Gerald Alexander ... he has been very solid and is becoming a playmaker.

4. I tried to focus a lot on Monroe and Britton when we had the ball, and they both seemed to have good games; I don't remember Mario Williams making any plays today, which is remarkable. Britton in particular never seems to take a play off and is always looking for someone to knock down.The center of the line is another matter ... I think Uchi will be a solid right guard but he was beaten badly on several occasions today, as were Meester and Vince. It's inexcusable that two weeks in a row we can't get enough of a push up the middle on consecutive plays for MJD to pick up a yard. And we have got to have some new short-yardage plays ... maybe something off tackle? And why do we never pitch it to Maurice going wide?

5. I feel so good for Nate Hughes. I liked his demotion after the drops in week 2 because of the message it sent, but it's great to see a young kid get another chance and redeem himself. He could be a factor on this team for many years.

6. Isn't it weird how kickers have bad games come up and bite them in the butt inexplicably? But Scobee manned up, put last week behind him and was incredible today in really difficult conditions. What was it, a 50-yarder he made into the wind? Would have been good from 58.

7. Say what you will about David Garrard, he is one tough son of a bitch. And he made some gorgious throws today, especially the TD to Hughes and a couple of third down conversions to the sideline. When he gets time he is awesome. When he tries to over-tough it he makes mistakes. Glad for him that fumble got overruled.

All in all we have to be thrilled how this team is developing. In the playoff hunt with 4 games left? We'd have taken that in a heartbeat before the season. Next week is huge. I just hope there are more than 36,000 people there.

JDR

ruffdaddy — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 02:15:41 -0000

Reading Zoltan's post and all the responses I realize how conflicted I am by the issue of Jack Del Rio as our head coach. There are those who believe in him, and those who want him fired tomorrow ... including my buddy's very adamant wife, who I've been tailgating with for 15 years.

I've always thought he was a good mixture of patience and toughness, and never struggled with having a long-time former player -- a "player's coach" -- as the leader of an NFL team. Three or four years ago I had a drink at a Jags game with a former member of the team who told me that the only group that partied more than the players was the coaches; it's hard to hear that and not question the overall commitment and maturity of the staff. But that was three of four years ago. I suspect it's a different environment now.

Last night on the Pittsburgh-Denver game, ESPN put up a graphic of the Steelers' recent first round draft picks. Check this out:

Pittsburgh Jacksonville

2003 Troy Polamalo Byron Leftwich

2004 Ben Roethlisburger Reggie Williams

2005 Heath Miller Matt Jones

2006 Santonio Holmes Marcedes Lewis

2007 Lawrence Timmons Reggie Nelson

2008 R. Mendenhall Derrick Nelson

JDR is not going anywhere, not with his current contract and the current ticket environment, so the discussion is moot. But it's a discussion we will continue to have anyway. I guess what bothers me most in regard to the coaching is the inconsistency; we are the Jaguars for crying out load, not the Bipolar Bears. Some years we are good on the road and weak at home. Some years we play well against good teams and play down to weaker opponents. This year we play solidly one week and horrendously the next. I blame that on coaching.

But in my view we should cut Jack some slack, give him a chance to continue to mature as a coach and see what he can do with a decent roster. Vic says it all the time: we don't have the players. If we want to hammer JDR for player personnel issues, fine. But let's give Gene a year or two more and see what JDR can do with what he gets. For some strange reason, I think he can get it done.

Leadership

ruffdaddy — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 22:47:08 -0000

On the way home from the game on Sunday I heard one of the players talking about Torry Holt's speech to the team before the final drive, and now I see this item at the top of the site. I can't tell you how happy this makes me. Almost as happy as the look on Jerry Jones' face when he lost the inaugural game in his new monument to himself.

For a long time I've been concerned about the lack of leadership among the players. As a season ticket holder since Day One I go back to the Brunell-Boselli axis, and while I am all for Christian beliefs, I'm not sure quoting the Bible gets it done at crunch time. Even during the years I defended Byron, I quietly wished he was less laid back and a more vocal leader. David Garrard is the same way ... low key, and maybe just too nice a guy to get in someone's face the way it needs to be done.

On defense I know Mike Peterson tried to fill the leadership role, just not sure players responded to him as he would have liked. You can't force it on people. Donovan Darius led by example with his hitting but was basically a quiet guy. I think Stroud had some leadership skills, and he and big John together certainly set a tone with just their presence. But Marcus is gone now. So who will be our Ray Lewis? Who will demonstrate the spit-in-your-face intensity of a Bill Cowher?

Bringing in Torry Holt was a huge benefit for this team, not just for his skills on the field, which were so evident on Sunday, and not just so he can teach a young receiving corps to run routes properly. I want some of the young players on this team to watch him lead, see his passion, understand that he knows what it takes to be a champion in this league, and gto learn from him. I seem to remember that 4 or 5 of our nine rookies were captains of their college teams, so clearly the leadership potential is there. If Torry can help a new generation of leaders emerge, he will be one of the most valuable additions in the history of this franchise.

How do you guys feel about it?

I've had about enough of this guy

ruffdaddy — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 19:11:27 -0000

I used to respect Peter King ... his knowledge, his contacts, his communication skills.

But like so many print journalists who have made the jump to TV, satellite radio, the internet, etc., he has really become full of himself. The last two things I remember him writing about our city and team are: 1) Jacksonville was supposed to become Atlanta, but it's just Hartford with palm trees; and b) The London Jaguars sounds about right.

And today, this:

Tennessee Titans (0-3) at Jacksonville Jaguars (1-2)

To: The 31 other teams of the NFL.
From: Jeff Fisher.
Re: The 2009 season.

It ain't over till we say it's over.

Prediction: Tennessee Titans 30, Jacksonville Jaguars 23

At some point this guy is going to get tired being so clever and writing about T.O., Brett Favre, Michael Vick and Jerry Jones' scoreboard, and find out that there is real substance in the changes that have been made here, and an extraordinary group of young Jaguars that are worth writing about.

Why we win

ruffdaddy — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 23:01:41 -0000

It's the week leading up to opening day and hope springs eternal across the league, nowhere more so than Jacksonville.

Sure, we have heartburn about blackouts and Peter King comments, and the unfortunate national image we have at the moment. But the truth is all will be well with this team. We've got the right leadership in place and we've turned a corner in the two areas that matter: character and talent. We're a season or two away from a full stadium and universal respect for the way we've pulled a 180. It's all going to happen, and it starts this Sunday when we beat Indy. Here are the reasons we win.

1. The element of surprise. The Colts have no idea what's coming at them. All they have to go on is the tape of the Redskins game and Dirk showed very little, just enough to confirm the health of some of our guys. We're going to throw the ball, and we're going to throw it to fast guys who won't immediately go down, and that's going to open up holes for Maurice. We score 31.

2. No Bob Sanders. I hate to give one guy this much credit, but Sanders is that kind of player, at least he has been against us. Especially in the run game. Quite honestly, I'm glad he's out.

3. Pressure on Peyton. To my untrained eye, he's lost a step. OK, half a step. And the highlight of our pre-season was the way we made opposing QBs uncomfortable, even if we didn't get a lot of sacks. I expect a lot from Harvey and Groves, and really like some of the blitz packages we showed in the first couple of games. Manning will do his thing, and I worry about the deep ball, but he'll see pressure from us that he's not used to.

4. Our linebackers. Assuming they are healthy, these guys are the key to our defense this year, and they have the experience now, the speed and the talent to be among the best groups in the league. With Big John and Titanic Terrance in the middle, our linebackers will control the run and blanket Dallas Clark.

5. Josh Scobee. He's had two game winners for us in Indy in the past 4 or 5 years, loves kicking indoors and was perfect in pre-season. I believe he'll be an all-pro kicker this year, and he'll take the first steps toward that this Sunday. If it comes down to the wire, you gotta love Scobee-doo.

So I have it about 31-27, and bring on Arizona. Can't wait!

The Archaic Blackout Policy

ruffdaddy — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 22:20:21 -0000

I got to the stadium Saturday night very early so I could watch the pre-game warmups. (Been a season ticket holder since day 1 of the franchise, BTW). Probably 50 people max in the stands.

Since I don't usually get there that early I wasn't concerned, but I started to panic with 30 minutes 'til game time when there couldn't have been more than 3-4,000 people in the stadium. But by kick-off it was representative ... disappointing, but a good group of vocal, hardcore Jagfans.

And then David and Troy found lightning in a bottle on the first play, the place erupted, and once I finished celebrating and sat back down I started thinking about all the people locally who didn't get to see that play. People who might have been considering buying tickets, people on the fence, people who would be reminded by that one exhilarating play how fortunate we are to have this team here, and how good it feels to have passion for your team when they pull off something magical.

I have a hard time believing that many people are going to buy tickets just because they can't watch it on TV. If they are planning to watch the game rather than attend it, that's the kind of fan they are. They are TV watchers. But I'm sure we all know a lot of people who used to have tickets, or who talk about maybe getting tickets, who just need a little push, like maybe from the rush of euphoria from a 74-yard TD pass on the game's opening play. The more I think about it the more certain I am that the NFL's blackout policy is ill-conceived.

Sometimes passion has to build over time, has to be cultivated. How are the people in this city going to get excited about the team's new direction and new young players if they can only watch half the games? And not the ones in which we're more likely to play well? I don't know, maybe I'm missing something, but it just seems like a really outdated policy to me. Thanks for letting me vent.

Give Jones a chance to rebound

ruffdaddy — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 20:56:01 -0000

The Jags would make a mistake by releasing Matt Jones now. Often a major kick in the butt like this arrest is what helps a person wake up, shed the air of entitlement and turn his or her life around. Maybe Jones has hit bottom and recognizes the changes he has to make not only in his personal life, but as a football player as well. He is certainly no hero in Arkansas anymore, and the only way to regain his self respect and his reputation is to show some toughness and be the player and person everyone expected him to be.We've given him several chances as a player, let's give him one more as a person and see what he's really made of.