News From The Jungle

After a rough loss on MNF, the Jaguars are showing up in headlines everywhere. From the team’s new owner to the Injured Reserve list all filled up, there are endless stories circulating the Jags Nation.

This week the Jaguars host the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at EverBank field.

Here are a few of the top stories from today’s headlines.

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Jacksonville Jaguars - Focused on the positive

Yahoo! SportsESPN confuses new Jacksonville with Old Jacksonville… and Charlotte  

SB Nation – NFL Finance Committee Approves Shahid Khan’s Purchase Of Jaguars 

Yahoo! SportsJacksonville ranks lowest amongst NFL teams 

The Washington PostInjury depleted Jaguars struggle to pressure QB and cover WRs in 38-14 loss to Chargers 

SB Nation2012 NFL Draft: Should The Jaguars Think About Quarterback?

Jacksonville.comNFL panel recommends Shahid Khan’s bid to buy Jaguars

CBS SportsJones-Drew at full speed, if not fully content, while Jaguars sputter

Miami HeraldJags place Chick on IR, add Price and Owusu-Ansah

Jacksonville.comMaurice Jones-Drew won’t say the rushing title means anything

Jaguars BlogSunk costs for a sinking franchise

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For more news from Jacksonville make sure to follow me on Twitter or Facebook.


Tale of the… Not So Tape – Jaguars vs. Chargers

This game preview is unique. Forget about the Jaguars’ lack of offense outside of MoJo and the anemic passing game. How many times must we look at the same awful statistics. Forget about a defense that ranks at the top of the league in most statistical categories, since injurious have ravaged that side of the ball. And I’m not exaggerating; the Jaguars (3-7) have about 426 players on injured reserve. Ok, maybe I am exaggerating, but just a little.

But none of that is going to matter against the Chargers. The Jaguars are out of the AFC South title hunt, but have a new head coach after the firing of Jack Del Rio early in the week. What I’ve heard from people around the team is that practices have been more organized and more intense, both of which are things the offense desperately needs.

So the Jaguars break in interim Head Coach Mel Tucker on a national stage against a Chargers (4-7) team who has indescribably underachieved this season. But I sense the Chargers don’t know exactly what they’re walking in to on Monday Night Football.

Oh, did I mention the Jaguars have a new owner? Mr. Khan or “the football world’s most incredible ‘stache”, as I like to call him, has agreed to buy the team outright from the previous longtime owner, Wayne Weaver. Ah, there is just a buzz here now. People around the community are excited to see how the Jaguars play, even though the playoffs are no longer a feasible option.

And it must be noted that since Mel Tucker has taken over, coaching staff and roster moves have been made for progress of the club. Starting wide receiver Jason Hill was waived, but not picked up on waivers by any other team. That’s saying something about the receiving corps on this team. The Jaguars gave more repetitions to Jarrett Dillard in practices this week, and I have a feeling that rookie Cecil Shorts could finally see some viable gametime action.

Once again, injuries have depleted the defense, mainly the secondary (CB Mathis, CB Cox, CB Middleton) and the defensive line. But, I expect the unit to keep the team in the game. It will be up to Gabbert and the offense to find a spark and not rely heavily so on Maurice Jones-Drew as they have done all season long. I personally am wondering if Dirk Koetter was able to install a few things from his personal playbook, not the one he has been using due to the nature of Jack Del Rio’s philosophy.

With that being said, the Chargers are walking into an electric environment that is tired of being bashed on by the national media. Yes, I’m am talking directly at you ESPN. Well, typing directly at you. But no matter the motive, it is always a good thing for fans, and an organization, to be optimistic about the steps that are being taken.

So I just urge that Jaguars fans buy tickets if you can and support the team any way that you can, even if that simply means correcting a lost soul about the team not being a laughing stock. My, my, my, the excitement is back in Jacksonville. It surely feels nice.

Happy footballing.


Your Guide To Everything That Went Down In Jacksonville This Week

As I sat down to write my post for the day I thought to myself… Where do I even beginning? Do I start with the coaching changes? What about the roster changes? Do I address to rumors of the team’s relocation? So many topics to cover. Let’s just get right to it.

Change is in the air in Jacksonville; starting with the announcement that Jack Del Rio was dismissed as the head coach of the Jaguars. It didn’t stop there though. Next came the news that Wayne Weaver would be selling the team to Shahid Khan.

Of course, news like this has been rocking the Jaguars nation. Speculation from all angles has set in & rumors are flying like hot cakes.

Let’s start with the rumors. Okay, first & for most until you hear the new owner Khan say he is moving the team, can we just put it to rest? I’m so sick of signing on Twitter & listen to everyone name off different cities in which the team will be moving.

Maybe you didn’t watch the press conference that was held on Monday & that’s why you are a little confused. Wayne Weaver decided to sell the team to Khan because he was confident in him & trusted that he would do whatever it takes to make the franchise successful in Jacksonville.

Sure, Weaver is simply putting his trust in Khan and once the papers are signed Khan can do whatever he wants. But there are so many other factors that come into play here.

First off, the franchise has a lease at EverBank that won’t expire until 2030! I doubt they will overlook that fact, which means Khan would have to spend millions just to break the contract.

Second, don’t forget that if Khan wanted to move the team he would need the approval of Roger Goodell & the rest of the NFL owners. Who thinks that would take awhile? (Insert raised hand). Do you honestly think the other NFL owners would simply ratify Khan’s path to billions of dollars without getting involved?

With that being said, there is no guarantee that the franchise would even be successful in LA. I mean there’s a reason they don’t currently have a team.

To finish off this topic, let’s also mention the rumor of the team moving to St. Louis. You may be thinking, “wait don’t they already have a team?” And you would be correct. In order for this nonsense rumor to work, the Rams would have to move to LA & then the Jags would move to St. Louis. Please raise your hand if this makes any sense to you? (If your hand is currently raised then you’re lucky you are at a computer & not in a room filled with people) Clearly this theory is dumb.

Alright enough of that. Now let’s discuss the roster changes that occurred since Mel Tucker took over as head coach. WR Jason Hill was cut from the team on Wednesday. This came as a small shock to fans. The only shocking part is that the Jaguars were using him as a #2 WR. Granted I don’t think anyone believes he earned that spot. This roster move will give other WR such as Chastin West & Jarrett Dillard more targets and will hopefully help out the struggling passing offense in Jacksonville.  

S Courtney Greene was placed on injured reserve after missing four games this season (2 due to a neck injury & 2 for a hamstring injury). This gives Jacksonville a total of 18 players on IR, the most of any NFL team this season.

Mel Tucker also made the decision to promote RB DuJuan Harris from the practice squad and sign CB Morgan Trent.

That seems like enough roster changes for one day.

Now let’s figure out which coach is in charge of what area. For this I have drawn a diagram… 

This should clear up the confusion… & hopefully it didn’t add any.

 

For more updates on everything going on in Jacksonville make sure to follow me on Twitter. If you’re not on Twitter then you’re at least a day behind. Trust me. I get office emails all the time of yesterday’s breaking twitter news. You don’t want to be bragging about yesterday’s news do you? 


The Changes Continue In Jacksonville, Wayne Weaver Holds Press Conference

As decided by most of my Twitter timeline, today is possibly the biggest day in Jacksonville since they became a franchise. With the announcement of Jack Del Rio being dismissed from his head coaching duties, came the news that the owner Wayne Weaver would be selling the team.

There has been speculation for years that Wayne Weaver would sell the team. Most NFL speculated that the Jaguars would be moved to LA. However, Weaver has stated on multiple occasions that he was planning an “exit strategy” but would not sell to anyone that did not share his “vision”.

Weaver discussed that today was a bittersweet day for him. He knew it was coming since he is 77 years old & worked his entire life. While he has loved being a part of the Jaguars organization for the last 18 years, he looks forward to being able to go as he pleases & spend more time with his family.

When asked if he still planned to be around, he said only at the new owners request. But then he added that he has two house in Jacksonville, wouldn’t be leaving the area & plans to be their biggest cheerleader. Move over Jaxson De Ville.

So who is the mystery man that Weaver has put all his trust into? His name is Shahid Khan. A Pakistan native, that moved to the US to pursue his dreams. As Wayne Weaver put it, his story is the true American Dream. After attending the University of Illinois for Engineering, a degree that he paid for him self, he started working at Flex-N-Gate.

Soon enough, with the help of a small business loan & some personal funds he managed to buy Flex-N-Gate & turn it into a worldwide corporation. His company currently employs over 10,000 people at 48 manufacturing plants in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Spain and Argentina, with annual sales exceeding $3 billion.

How did Khan convince Weaver he is the one to buy the team? Well as Weaver put it, he simply put “his trust in human nature”. Weaver believes that Khan has “a true passion” for Jacksonville football. When asked about a contract to keep the team in Jacksonville Weaver stated that no such thing existed but he was not worried. He truly believes that Khan shares his vision & has no desire to move the team.

Khan will take over as the new owner of the Jacksonville Jaguars as soon as the deal is finalized on January 4th. Until then Wayne Weaver will have full control & make all decisions based on the best interest of the team. He will even start the list of potential head coaches for next season.

Weaver said that they will start to compile the list of both high & low profile coaches. They are interested in big name coaches that already have won championships, as well as newbies that are ready for their big break into a successful coach. Mel Tucker will also receive an opportunity to interview for the position.

After being asked about his decision to fire Jack Del Rio, Weaver stated that he could have done it last week but wanted to wait until the sale of the team was a done deal. He didn’t want to fire the head coach one week & sell the team the next.

He also said that he loves the Jaguars fans passion but they did not influence his final decision. Weaver added that “people must be held accountable for what they have achieved” & that is why he decided to let Del Rio go.

Another question addressed during the press conference was if today’s decisions will affect the potential blackouts toward the end of the season. With 3 home games left, Weaver said it will be up to the community. There are still a lot of tickets left but he believes if the community stands behind their team it shouldn’t be an issue.

That’s not the only thing Weaver wants the community to support… He stated during the press conference that “he still believes that Blaine Gabbert will be an outstanding quarterback. He will lead this team to a championship.”

The press conference will continue at 1:00pm with Gene Smith & Mel Tucker.


“I’m Not Limping, I’m Pimping” – Jack Del Rio Jokes After Sideline Injury

Something must be in the air this year. Not only does it appear like top NFL players are falling victim to injuries each week, now the coaches are getting involved. Jacksonville’s head coach Jack Del Rio has enough attention coming his way with all the chatter about his job being on the line. He doesn’t need to attract any more by getting injured, that is for sure. Unfortunately for Jack, he was injured during the Monday Night Football game in which his team defeated the Ravens 12-7.

The injury is minor considering no x-rays or MRI’s were involved. The head coach said all he needed was some ice & Tylenol before being good to go! At first it was unclear exactly when JDR sustained the injury. It now appears that the Ravens punter Sam Koch ran off the sidelines after a punt return & caused the injury to JDR’s leg. It was speculated that Koch was brought out of bound by Mike Thomas. But Thomas denies he had anything to do with the cause of the injury.

“I just ran out of bounds. It was the punter. It wasn’t me, though,” Thomas said. “He’s having his fun with it. That’s always a plus when your coach can come out and be in good spirits and kind of liven it up for us. It’s just funny to see him in a cart, running around and blowing whistles. It’s a different look.”

While injuries are usually no laughing matter, that didn’t keep the team from finding their head coaches injury completely hilarious. Especially when you consider that Jack Del Rio is a former NFL linebacker… and he was just injured by a kicker.

Jacksonville’s MVP of the MNF, kicker Josh Scobee said, “I saw [Del Rio] rolling out and I literally laughed as loud as I could so he could hear it, but he didn’t.”

Even Tight End Marcedes Lewis was assumed when he saw the head coach wheeling out to practice in a golf cart. He even joked it was a result of the lockout.

“They’re not conditioning to walk around,” Lewis said. “Today at practice, Tuck was in his scooter and Jack rolled up in his little golf cart right next to him. Thought they were about to race or something.”

JDR is not the only Jaguars coach to sustain an injury this season; Defensive coordinator Mel Tucker suffered a torn quadriceps muscle a few weeks ago when catching punts after practice. Tucker’s injury required surgery to repair the torn muscle.

Josh Scobee continued to joke around stating, “I was going to say something to Dirk [Koetter] like, ‘What’s the deal? You need to get some kind of hover-round or scooter out here because you’re the only one without some kind of mobile transportation.”

The Jaguars aren’t the only team that has an injured coach on the sideline. Saints head coach Sean Payton suffered from a torn left medial collateral ligament and a tibia fracture. His injury was caused when Tampa Bay Buccaneers LB Mason Foster knocked Saints TE Jimmy Graham out of bounds. Unfortunately, Payton’s leg got tangled up in the mess & has led to his surgery. In week 7, Payton was required to coach from the Press Box while he continues to recover.

Jack Del Rio’s injuries are not even close to being as severe as Payton’s, or Tucker. He will resume his life as normal… No sympathy needed for the struggling head coach.