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| | | | | | | | Friday, September 22, 2000
Jaguars among the league's best - if Taylor can come back
By Alex Laracy
MondayNightFootball.com
The 2000 preseason couldn't have gone much worse for the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Jags' offensive line was steam-rolled by a rash of injuries in what seemed like 30 seconds. With standout offensive tackle Leon Searcy out for the season with a torn ACL and stud running back Fred Taylor once again displaying an ability to fall lame, perhaps even head coach Tom Coughlin started believing rumors that he was headed off to South Bend to take Bob Davie's job.
|  | | Without Fred Taylor, Jaguars quarterback Mark Brunell has been airing it out this season. |
But now at 2-1, the Jags have held up nicely and with Taylor getting healthy, Coughlin's crew should have the horses to make a Super Bowl run.
The offense: finally, the full arsenal
Quarterback Mark Brunell has firmly established himself as among the league's best, and his 863 yards passing thus far is second only to that Warner freak out in St. Louis. Clearly, Brunell is an outstanding leader of this potent offensive attack -- he just has to start doing it against the Titans if he wants his critics to aim their prickly barbs elsewhere.
Despite consistently putting up numbers rivaling the likes of household names Keyshawn Johnson, Randy Moss and Isaac Bruce, many people still think Jimmy Smith was the guy Rick Schroeder replaced on "NYPD Blue." What he might just be is the league's premier receiver (his 27 receptions for 384 yards lead the NFL in both categories), and his partner in crime, Keenan McCardell, is no slouch either (26 for 284, 2nd and 4th, respectively). These guys have been doing it for years and need to get to the Big One to get the credit they deserve.
What should make the aforementioned trio even better is the return of Taylor this week. Taylor, when healthy, is one of the league's most efficient backs. But that's a big "when" -- Taylor has missed nine of 19 regular season games since his 1,223-yard rookie campaign in '98.
Leading the slew of Jags' banged-up blockers is perennial All-Pro Tony Boselli, who looks to have rebounded nicely from tearing his ACL last January. Zach Wiegert has filled in admirably for Searcy, while guards Brad Meester, Brendan Stai and center John Wade are solid, yet unspectacular. Kyle Brady is an excellent blocker and is finally starting to show some progress in his pass catching (11 receptions for 124 yards).
The defense: the Hardy boys
A respectable 11th in the league in total defense thus far, the Jacksonville defense must go from complementing the Jags' explosive offense to matching its production.
Tackling machine Hardy Nickerson was signed from Tampa Bay in the offseason, providing the Jags D with the veteran leader up front they seemed to lack in the last few postseasons. Look for Nickerson to guide the talented Kevin Hardy (97 tackles, 10.5 sacks in '99) from a Pro-Bowl outside linebacker to one of the league's most dominant defensive players. Veteran Lonnie Marts (64 tackles in '99) mans the other linebacker spot.
Despite a long and ugly holdout during training camp, Tony Brackens (12 sacks in '99) did return and has maintained his premier pass rushing form with 2.5 sacks thus far. Brackens continues to improve his run defense, and should establish himself as one of the league's best D-lineman in '00. Gary Walker (54 tackles, 10 sacks in '99) is as underrated an interior lineman as there is in the league, while Renaldo Wynn and Seth Payne do little more than hold their own to round out the defensive front.
With veteran free safety Carnell Lake out for the season with an ankle injury, the Jags' secondary has been inconsistent. However, they rebounded nicely against the Bengals last week after making Tony Banks look invincible (5 touchdown passes) in Week 2.
Cornerback Aaron Beasley (6 ints in '99) and strong safety Donovin Darius are amongst the best at their respective positions, and second-year corner Fernando Bryant could join that club by season's end. Stewart Rayna and Kiwaukee Thomas have experienced some growing pains in trying to replace Lake. This unit must step up versus the likes of Manning, Harrison and James if they hope to keep the high-powered Colts under 35 points.
The prognosis
With Brunell, Taylor, Smith and McCardell, the Jags are going to put points on the board. They also have more than sufficient talent on defense, and one of the league's best coaches in drill sergeant Coughlin. Outside of the obvious problem of being virtually owned by Tennessee, the Jags should legitimately contend for the rights to go to their first Super Bowl if Taylor can stay healthy, and Brunell and the defense hold up when the games really matter come December. Those are big "ifs," but count on 11 wins for Brunell's boys in 2000.
Note:
-- The Jags are 5-0 all-time on Monday Night Football.
-- Kicker Mike Hollis, possessor of the best field goal percentage in NFL history, is out indefinitely with an injured back, and has been replaced by kickoff specialist Steve Lindsey (2-3 last Sunday vs. the Bengals.)
Alex Laracy is the assistant editor of MondayNightFootball.com.
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R. Jay Soward says it is a blessing to be drafted by the Jags and be able to learn from Jimmy Smith and Keenan McCardell.