State of the Union: Jacksonville Jaguars

Does anyone else miss Matt Jones? I do.

It's gotta be tough to be a Jacksonville Jaguar. You have no fans and you're stuck in mediocrity. You play for a team that isn't bad enough to get a top 5 pick or require a complete overhaul but you aren't good enough to be a contender. At least you have Maurice Jones-Drew on your side. It's a shame that the majority of people in Jacksonville are too hung over from watching Florida kill Tennessee A&M on Saturdays to get to the stadium on Sundays because the guy plays like a bowling ball. Their offense will rest a heavy load on his shoulders, but if they're going to be successful the Jags will need more playmakers. Mike Sims-Walker had a strong showing in 2009, but injuries and and lack of other receiving threats hampered his production in the second half of the year. Wide receiver shouldn't be as big of a problem in 2010 with the emergence of young guys like Mike Thomas and Tiquan Underwood in camp. They're still unproven, but the fact that they have any potential at wideout after flameouts like Jones is a step in the right direction. With tight ends Mercedes Lewis and Zach Miller (assuming he can get healthy) and an improved offensive line Jacksonville's offense should be better than 18th in the league provided that David Garrard can get them the ball. David Garrard is dominating this preseason. 10 total yards of offense against the Eagles? Too good to be true. Wait, that was in a single quarter? David must be a wizard. I don't know how he hasn't gained the love of Jaguar faithful after performances like that. Mind boggling.

Safeties are an issue for Jacksonville's defense. Reggie Nelson is bad and his backup Anthony Williams is worse. Playing against 4 of the top 6 passing offenses this year (including Indianapolis and Houston who are in the division) won't make matters easier. Instead of addressing the issue directly, the Jags revamped their defensive line and are hoping that a better pass rush will solve the issue. Their first four draft picks were all for defensive tackles and ends, plus they added defensive end Aaron Kampman in free agency. The results haven't been there yet in the preseason, but the younger d-line will make things easier on their secondary in time. At the very least they can't be worse than last year.

If Garrard continues to throw interceptions and fumble the ball, it won't matter that the defense will be better. There's too much offense in the AFC south outside of Jacksonville for them to get involved in shootouts. If the Jags can be more consistent though they have the potential to contend the way they did in 2007 when they won a playoff game. They beat the Jets and beat the Texans twice last season, but they also needed overtime to win against St. Louis, lost to Cleveland, and were destroyed by Seattle. Get yourselves together Jaguars and lose to Houston like you're supposed to. If you don't but you continue to suck against everyone else then all you're doing is acting like dicks and making them look bad.