Jaguars hope draft day puts rush on opponents
editor1 |Apr 28,2008
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By Doug Orth
PA SportsTicker Staff Writer
For the last three seasons, the Jacksonville Jaguars have been
considered by many as the most likely team to knock the
Indianapolis Colts from their perch atop the AFC South.
While that faith hasn't been totally unfounded - Jacksonville
has made the postseason in two of the last three seasons - the
Jaguars have yet to overtake the Colts in the division or figure
out a way to move past the New England Patriots in the
playoffs.
After defensive coordinator Mike Smith accepted the head
coaching position with the Atlanta Falcons in the offseason,
Jacksonville turned to Washington Redskins assistant Gregg
Williams to assume the reins of the Jaguars' vaunted defense -
the one that is consistently mentioned as one of the few units
that consistently matches up well with the high-powered Colts'
offense.
It's a good bet that Williams will go right back to the
aggressive blitzing schemes that have twice made him a
sought-after candidate for head coaching jobs.
His first project figures to be how to help his new team collect
some wins against Indianapolis - which has won its division the
past five seasons - as the Jaguars have won just once in their
last six games against their division rival.
While Smith couldn't exactly be blamed for not being able to do
something the rest of the league struggles with - containing the
Colts' offense - critics were willing to lay some blame at his
feet for the disappointing performance overall by Jacksonville's
defense in 2007.
For the first time since 2004, the Jaguars finished lower than
sixth in yards and points allowed.
Certainly, injuries to the Jaguars' vaunted front four
contributed greatly to the slight statistical decline, but the
one element that seems to be missing from Jacksonville's defense
each season is the presence of a highly-regarded pass rusher.
That void seemed to be accentuated further against the Patriots
in the playoffs and in two regular-season meetings against the
Colts, as the Jaguars could manage just four sacks combined in
those three contests.
"I'm really getting sick of reading about that, and I say that
with half a smile," Jaguars coach Jack Del Rio said. "I
understand all that that's being regurgitated right now. (The
New York Giants) won (the Super Bowl), so they had great pass
rushers.
"They took (defensive) ends the last few years, people wondered
why and now, all of a sudden, instead of criticism, everyone
(believes), all of a sudden, it's like, 'That's the thing to
do.'"
Only Bobby McCray - who totaled 10 sacks in 2006 - has hit
double digits in that category since Tony Brackens collected 11
in 2001, but he left in free agency.
Reggie Hayward is attempting to make a comeback from Achilles
surgery and Paul Spicer will turn 33 in training camp.
To that end, the Jaguars lent an eye toward this past weekend
determined to correct that oversight.
Jacksonville entered the draft with eight picks, including two
in the third round and three in the fifth round. But when
Sunday ended and the dust cleared, the Jaguars left little doubt
that they believed they are closing in on the NFL's elite.
Originally slotted to pick No. 25 overall, Jacksonville paid a
steep price - two third-round selections and a fourth-rounder in
addition to its own first rounder - to move up to Baltimore's
No. 8 spot to select Florida defensive end Derrick Harvey.
"He fits in very well," Del Rio said. "We think he's a very
good size now, almost 6-5, 270 pounds who is going to grow into
a 280-285-pound body.
"He's produced sacks and forced turnovers and been an impact
player and he's really played his best football in big games,
and we just think he's a real good fit for us."
Del Rio defended Jacksonville's decision to part with draft
picks in exchange for the eighth overall slot, claiming that
Harvey was worth it.
"We took (Harvey) where we wanted (to take him)," Del Rio said.
"If you have somebody that you think is a really good fit, and
he's a really good player, and he's the kind of guy that you
want to add, when you have that opportunity, you take advantage
of it."
Having already mastered the art of trading up for a pass rusher,
the Jaguars repeated themselves in the second round, dealing a
couple of late-round picks this year and next to get Auburn
defensive end Quentin Groves with the 52nd overall pick.
"What makes (Groves) real special is his talent to close on the
quarterback," Del Rio said. "He'll naturally grow a little bit.
He weighed 259 (pounds) the last time we worked him out."
With that haul, Jacksonville got lucky twice in the same day at
an event where teams treat each selection like gold.
Despite coming up short on the point chart, what most NFL teams
use as a value guide, the Jaguars were able to strike a deal
with Baltimore, which wanted out of its original pick in an
effort to take Delaware quarterback Joe Flacco at a more
reasonable spot.
As far as Groves was concerned, many prognosticators expected
the Auburn standout to be drafted at the end of the first or
beginning of the second round.
"He was standing out a little bit," Del Rio said. "We drafted
him to be a right end - a pass rusher."
In all, the Jaguars made just five picks in the 2008 NFL draft,
with four coming on the defensive side of the ball. In the end,
they appear to have few regrets about thumbing their nose at
the potential that mid-to-late round picks can sometimes
fulfill.
"We've improved our ability to affect the quarterback with what
we did today," Del Rio said. "That's part of doing business the
way we have.
"With our roster the way it is, it would be difficult for those
guys (late-round picks) to legitimately be here."
Of course - as it always goes in the NFL - if Harvey and Groves
meet the expectations of their new employer, only a select few
will remember just how much Jacksonville invested into this
draft.
Well, a select few and the quarterbacks that lie in the Jaguars'
wake.
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