by Tom Weppel
* this article is exclusive to eujacksonville.com
As I’m sure you all know, this weekend the NFL will hold their annual Draft of college players. It’s a chance for every fan from every team to congregate in front of their televisions for an afternoon and act as if the team decisions rest on their shoulders. It gives the fans an opportunity to determine how best to improve their respective teams, as if every single team in the league needs improvement.
For this year, we already know that the Miami Dolphins, with the first choice in the Draft, took Michigan OT Ryan Long, having signed him to a big, long-term deal, including $30 million in guaranteed money. Many former NFL linemen have cringed when hearing those numbers, only wishing they were a lot younger.
This year the Jaguars slot in the Draft is fairly low, mainly because of their success last year. The Jags had an 11-5 record, got into the playoffs, and beat the Steelers in Pittsburgh, before faltering to the Patriots in Foxboro. And so, Jacksonville will draft in the 26th position of each round this year.
The Jags will also have additional picks as a result of their trades for Marcus Stroud to Buffalo, and Alvin Pearman to Seattle.
When you look at the Jaguar roster, you don’t see some names you might be familiar with from the last few seasons, as is usually the case. Gone, due to free agency or trade, are G Chris Naeole and WR Ernest Wilford on Offense, and the DT Stroud, DE Bobby McCray, S Sammy Knight, and CB Aaron Glenn on Defense.
And so, while Jacksonville certainly has a solid corps of talent on their roster currently, there is always room for young, strong, fast players at various positions.
With Stroud and McCray gone, and there still being a question mark as to the effectiveness of Reggie Heyward from his Achilles injury last season, the area of consideration strongest in the minds of Jack Del Rio, GM James Harris, and Director of Scouting Gene Smith, would certainly be the Defensive Line. The Jags would love nothing more than to find a big, strong, fast D-line player, either for the end or in the middle, to help fortify their depth chart and give them solid play. There are a number of college players available at that position, and the Jaguars will have a pretty good shot at finding a guy they can feel good about.
I mention all of this, realizing the Jags did indeed sign free agent DT Jimmy Kennedy from the Chicago Bears.
After that, Jacksonville will possibly look at finding perhaps a Safety that can back up the play of Reggie Nelson and Gerald Sensabaugh. They can also look for a backup QB. With Quinn Gray gone, the Jags now have former Dolphin Cleo Lemon, and Todd Bouman, who was in Training Camp last year.
Otherwise, look for the Jags to go with a best available player method in making their choices.
Whatever the case, the Draft can always be an interesting couple of days, if you are a true, die-hard NFL football fan. There is plenty of intrigue. There is a lot of behind-the-scenes wheeling and dealing taking place. No matter what the pick, there will be someone who thinks it’s a great pick, and someone who thinks the player chosen will suck.
And by next week, we will see a whole new corps of potential Jaguar players roll into the River City, all wanting to make it on the professional level.
Tom Weppel talks trash with Greg Larson, Lonnie Marts, Eugene Chung, Artis Gilmore, and Ron Duguay on SportsAvengers.com 24/7.
Article Published in the April 2008 Issue of EU Jacksonville
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