Jaguars Lose OT Rashod Hill
- The Vikings signed offensive tackle Rashod Hill to the 53-man roster off of the Jaguars‘ practice squad, as agent Brett Tessler tweets. Hill will help provide depth in the wake of Jake Long‘s season-ending injury, which has landed him on injured reserve.
Should Jaguars Decline Bortles' Option?
- Jaguars defensive tackle Sen’Derrick Marks is unhappy with his playing time. “[Watching] is not my game,” Marks told Ryan O’Halloran of the Florida Times-Union. “I’ve flat-out done a lot for this organization and to be slapped in the face – I was on the sideline for the majority of the game and I didn’t like it.” Marks played in just 23 of 63 snaps against Houston on Sunday and he said his frustration had been “simmering for a while.” Once considered a key member of the Jags’ D-Line, Marks slipped on the depth chart after an injury-marred 2015 and the signing of Malik Jackson. Marks is eligible for free agency after the 2017 season, but the Jags could also save $4.475MM and eat just $200K by releasing him before June 1st.
As Blake Bortles continues to struggle, Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com opines that the Jaguars should decline his fifth-year option. Before the season, the quarterback’s option would have been considered to be a no-brainer. Now, it’s not such an easy decision as the 24-year-old’s play continues to hurt the team. Pro Football Focus has Bortles ranked as the No. 28 QB in the NFL out of 34 qualified players and that score is actually bolstered by his QB runs. Evaluated only on passing plays, Bortles sits at No. 29 behind shaky Denver quarterback Trevor Siemian.
Jaguars Face Decision On Kelvin Beachum
- Heading into Sunday’s game with a 2-6 record, the Jaguars don’t appear to have a shot at the playoffs, but the club can still use the rest of 2016 to evaluate itself, as Michael DiRocco of ESPN.com writes. The primary goal for the remainder of the year should be to determine the root cause of quarterback Blake Bortles‘ struggles, opines DiRocco, but Jacksonville also needs to look at its offensive line. Specifically, the Jaguars must decide if they want to exercise left tackle Kelvin Beachum‘s option bonus, which would kick in four more years on his contract.
Jaguars Notes: Coughlin, Miller
Could the Jaguars hire Tom Coughlin as their next coach? No conversations have taken place between the two parties, but Adam Schefter of ESPN.com wonders if the Jags could be interested in Coughlin, who was their very first coach as an expansion franchise. Coughlin – who coached the Jags from 1995-2002 – still has a home in Jacksonville, his charity is based there, and he has made it clear that he wants to coach. One source close to the situation told Schefter that “it’s not the craziest idea in the world.” One obstacle, however, could be Coughlin’s age (71 next August), as well as the fact that he enjoys his current role with the league, tweets Tom Pelissero of USA Today.
Jaguars Work Out Punter
- The Jaguars worked out punter Cody Webster today, Adam Caplan of ESPN.com tweets. Webster worked out for the Bears earlier this season. The former Purdue punter last kicked in a game for the 2013 Boilermakers.
Jaguars’ Josh Wells To Return From IR
The Jaguars have designated offensive tackle Josh Wells as their player to return from injured reserve, the club announced today. Wells returned to practice on Monday, and Jacksonville now has a three-week window to decide whether to activate him.
[RELATED: Jaguars Fire Greg Olson]
Wells, 25, appeared in 12 games in 2014 after signing as an undrafted free agent out of James Madison. Injuries bit him last season, though, as a left thumb issue caused him to miss the entire year. In 2016, it’s again been a thumb injury — albeit to the right thumb — that’s kept him out. If he can get back on the field, Wells will serve as a backup to tackles Kelvin Beachum and Jermey Parnell.
Because each NFL club can only designate one player to return from IR, the other Jaguars on the reserve list are now officially out for the season. That means fellow offensive lineman Luke Joeckel, safety James Sample, defensive tackle Roy Miller, and others have no hope of returning this year. Center/guard Luke Bowanko, meanwhile, was placed on PUP before the season started and still has a shot to see the field in 2016.
Jaguars Notes: Marrone, Hackett, OL
The Jaguars‘ decision to promote Nathaniel Hackett to offensive coordinator today would ease the transition in the event that Doug Marrone is promoted to head coach, as Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com (Twitter links). Obviously, projecting the firing of current head coach Gus Bradley is putting the cart before the horse, and recent reports have indicated that Bradley is safe through the end of the season. But Hackett has a working relationship with Marrone — he called plays for Marrone both at Syracuse and with the Bills — and would certainly keep the OC job if Marrone were to take over.
- Offensive line should be the priority for the Jaguars in 2017 free agency, opines Michael DiRocco of ESPN.com. Jacksonville signed left tackle Kelvin Beachum over the offseason, but otherwise stood pat on its offensive line. The unit has struggled to get the run game going, ranking 30th in Football Outsiders‘ run grading metric. Former No. 2 overall pick Luke Joeckel, who recently underwent surgery and is done for the year, could be an option to be re-signed, while T.J. Lang, Kevin Zeitler, and Riley Reiff will be the top options on the 2017 market.
Jaguars Fire OC Greg Olson
The Jaguars have made a coaching change after all. The club has fired offensive coordinator Greg Olson, according to Adam Schefter and and Adam Caplan of ESPN.com (via Twitter). Quarterbacks coach Nathaniel Hackett will take over as Jacksonville’s play-caller, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com.
[RELATED: Jacksonville Jaguars Depth Chart]
After Jacksonville lost in an emphatic fashion to the division rival Titans on Thursday night, owner Shad Kahn expressed his displeasure with the club’s performance but did not make a move to relieve head coach Gus Bradley, whom recent reports have indicated is safe through the 2016 campaign. Bradley, too, publicly supported his coaching staff, but did not specifically endorse any individual coach following the loss.
Indeed, Bradley has experienced a “disconnect” with Olson for some time, per Rapoport (Twitter link), who adds that Bradley felt the offensive coordinator had abandoned an emphasis on the rushing attack. The Jaguars currently rank 31st in the NFL with only 72.6 rushing yards per game, and place 29th in Football Outsiders’ rushing DVOA.
Jacksonville’s passing game hasn’t been especially effective either, ranking 28th in DVOA as quarterback Blake Bortles has seemingly regressed in his third NFL season. Through seven games, Bortles has only completed 60% of his passes while posting 12 interceptions and nine touchdowns. And Bortles’ statistics don’t paint the entire picture, as Thursday night’s game was evidence that he can pad his numbers late in losing efforts.
Of course, the man taking over for Olson was previously Bortles’ position coach, so it’s fair to wonder if the young signal-caller will be able to improve over the second half of the season. Hackett, 36, has previously served as the offensive coordinator for both the Bills and Syracuse, but has been with the Jaguars since 2015. According to Caplan (Twitter link), Hackett will likely aim to help Bortles to release the ball in a quicker fashion in an effort to stave off opposing pass rushers.
Olson, 53, had been in his second stint with Jacksonville, having served as the team’s assistant head coach and quarterbacks coach during the 2012 campaign. He’s acted as play-caller for a number of NFL teams, including the Lions, Rams, Buccaneers, and Raiders.
Gus Bradley Isn't Anticipating Any Coaching Changes
- Jaguars coach Gus Bradley provided an emphatic “no” when asked if his team’s 2-5 start could lead to changes on the coaching staff. However, Ryan O’Halloran of Jacksonville.com notes that the head coach didn’t necessarily endorse any of his fellow coaches, including offensive coordinator Greg Olson.
- Some Jaguars players recognize that their coaches may be on the hot seat following a slow start to the season. “Gus will always take the blame as the coach,” wideout Allen Hurns told O’Halloran. “We’ve got to win. I’m worried [about him]. Everybody feels strongly about Gus. You try not to listen to it or let it get to you, but it is kind of impossible now. Hopefully, they’ll stick it out with him but we’ve got to find something to get this going.”
[SOURCE LINK]
DeMarco Murray On Jaguars' 2015 Interest
- Although the Jaguars were interested in running back DeMarco Murray when he became a free agent in 2015, his price tag proved too costly for Jacksonville and Murray ended up signing with Philadelphia, as Hays Carlyon of Jacksonville.com recalls. “It was great,” Murray said of meeting with the Jags. “To this day, I always look back and wonder if I would’ve been a Jaguar because of Gus [Bradley]. I got a chance to basically meet him and learn about him in a week span. It was so hard for me to tell him no.”