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JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- I came to the Jaguars' headquarters at EverBank Field in search of specifics.

Blaine Gabbert’s terrible rookie year was well-documented. But his new coaches believe he still can become a quality NFL quarterback.

What have they seen that fuels their confidence in him? And can we expect to see improvement in summer camp and fall games?

We’ve heard from coach Mike Mularkey about how he respected the way Gabbert dealt with all the negativity connected to his completion percentage of just over 50.0, the 40 sacks he absorbed, the 12 touchdown passes against 11 interceptions, his 14 fumbles (five of them lost) and 65.4 passer rating.

Offensive coordinator Bob Bratkowski offered some analysis of what needed fixing in this “Evening with the Coaches” talk early in the offseason.

I wanted to pick up on that.

Enduring early lumps is part of the deal for virtually every quarterback early in his career. Now, with a new start, tell me about what he’s doing better, I asked.

The initial request was a long shot, but I was still disappointed that Gabbert and his coaches were unwilling to show me one play on film -- comparing and contrasting what Gabbert did with it in last year’s training camp or during last season, and what he’s doing now. No, they don’t need to go into that sort of detail or offer that level of information. But what would it have hurt?

Short of that, Bratkowski offered the most detail in discussing Gabbert’s improvements so far, circling back to what he touched on in that chalk talk.

“Fundamentally, there were some times last year in his drops when he was getting a little bit long with his footwork and getting a little too fast,” Bratkowski said. “So what we’ve tried to do is get him to slow his feet down just a little bit, take shorter steps and stand taller in the pocket.

“Those are some things we identified when we first looked at him, and he’s improving on those things out there right now. You can see him carrying it into the actual plays we’re running in team situations.”

After a fast drop that took him too deep, he typically wound up shuffling forward as soon as he completed his drop, and his busy feet hurt his ability to make sound throws.

Gabbert said forming the new habit isn’t hard.

“The biggest thing all the quarterbacks are working on is just calming our feet down, staying in the pocket, not getting too long, not taking too long of a drop,” Gabbert said. “Because at some point in time, the angles get off with our offensive tackles when they’re trying to block a rush end …

“A lot of the footwork is dictated on the route concepts, the type of offense you run, the style of offense you run. And we have a different offense. We have different plays, and the drops go with those types of plays.”

Mularkey said the Jaguars' offense is about half installed at this point. Reporters are dismissed from OTA sessions once the team reaches the installation phase.

So, despite the reportorial desire to be shown, not told, those of us trying to track the team are left to rely more on conversations than observations regarding Gabbert and everything else.

In the handful of team plays I saw, one horrific pass stood out: a short throw over the middle that bounced well behind the intended receiver. At another point, as the quarterbacks threw to a couple of stationary receivers while running through some red zone possibilities, they were aiming for a target at the front left corner of the end zone.

The situation required a high, firm pass. After Gabbert’s first try wasn’t loopy enough, quarterbacks coach Greg Olson assumed the position of a cornerback the pass needed to get over. He stood with his back to the throw, an arm extended. But as he anticipated the ball’s arrival, he jokingly pulled his hands back to cover his head.

“Can I trust you?” he joked as he turned back to Gabbert, whose second attempt at the pass had cleared Olson and landed where it needed to, proving him trustworthy.

It was rhetorically symbolic, I thought.

"It really is about that to me, at any position with any position coach -- there's got to be a trust factor," Olson said. "He's got to feel that everything I tell him is meant to get him better. Three months into the relationship, I think we are developing that trust factor. If there is no trust there, you have no chance to grow."

Gabbert's teammates have big expectations for a big bounce-back after a rookie season that included the team's being sold and former coach Jack Del Rio getting fired during a 5-11 season.

“I don’t know that I’ve ever heard of a situation where a quarterback gets thrown into a starting role that early with the deficiencies in personnel that we had at that time, with a lot of things stacked against him,” said guard Uche Nwaneri.

“I think people kind of teed off on him. There were some things that he did that weren’t particularly the best, but, you know, he was a rookie. There were so many things happening that affect the quarterback as the result of protection, route running, guys getting open.”

Look, it’s somehow fashionable to say that the bad things Gabbert put on display last year serve as indisputable evidence he can’t be a successful NFL quarterback. I understand his footwork isn’t the only thing that gets sped up -- our assessments come faster than ever.

But judging a quarterback on 15 games and 13 starts with a bad team is simply too hasty.

Gabbert is not going to be Peyton Manning or Troy Aikman. But those guys were awful as rookies, too. Manning threw 28 interceptions, and his Colts were 3-13. Aikman threw 18 interceptions and didn’t win a game for the Cowboys.

Two things struck me as I spoke with Gabbert that I think are significant for right now.

Several times he talked about how’s he’s having fun, how football is fun, how the new offense is fun.

And he still looks and sounds the part -- he’s got confidence as he talks, and in the way he carries himself. He doesn’t look like a broken guy. He looks like a kid ready to go give it another try.

The biggest issue is dealing with the rush. Olson said the team is trading some seven-on-seven passing situations (where there are no linemen) for team periods where Gabbert has to feel pressure and sort it out. In drills without defenders, a coach or an equipment guy typically charges at him with flailing arms.

"For a guy coming out of a system in college where he wasn't only in the shotgun, but they had him lined up 7 yards deep, it was new to him last season," Olson said. "We're just hoping he'll be more comfortable with that environment, coming out from underneath center, taking a drop with an oncoming rush. That's all you can hope for right now, is the comfort level gets much greater. And it's been good."

Not having OTAs and minicamps didn’t hurt Cam Newton when it came to posting big rookie numbers for the Panthers, and it didn’t stop Andy Dalton from leading the Bengals to the playoffs.

Gabbert didn’t get off to the same kind of start, and maybe he’ll never earn his way into a conversation about the top quarterbacks of the 2011 draft class.

He’s getting that OTA time now. There is time to build slowly. It’s a different deal.

I wondered if Gabbert was appreciating the pace now, or finding himself anxious to get to the Jaguars' Sept. 9 opener in Minnesota, so he could do something to start to erase the dud of a first season.

“Everybody’s eager,” he said. “When you have a season where things don’t go the way you want them to, you’re always eager to get back out there. But it’s a process.”

The important people are willing to give him the time to go through it. The rest of us will just have to wait.

Houston Texans

Matt Schaub isn't in the elite Tom Brady-Peyton Manning class of NFL quarterbacks, but with the talent Houston has assembled around him on both sides of the ball, he's good enough to take the Texans to a Super Bowl. That, anyway, is the contention of SB Nation's Brian McDonald, taking issue with fans' grumbling about Schaub.

Indianapolis Colts

The NFL Network confirmed a Boston Globe report that former Colts tight end Dallas Clark worked out this week for the New England Patriots. But it looks like the Pats are just doing their due diligence, ESPNBoston.com's Mike Reiss writes -- noting that the team has signed a tight end since Clark's been on the market.

The team claimed Zane Taylor off waivers from Philadelphia -- the third offensive guard the Colts have so taken from the Eagles, Pro Football Weekly observes. They cut guard Matt Murphy to make room.

Jacksonville Jaguars

New offensive coordinator Bob Bratkowski says skipping this week's organized team activities isn't doing Maurice Jones-Drew any favors. "It's certainly not helping him," Bratkowski, who's installing a new scheme, said of the running back, who often skips such OTAs, but this year wants a new contract. "Whether it’s hurting him or not, that remains to be seen."

With Jones-Drew absent, running back Rashad Jennings has been working with the starters, writes John Oehser of the team's web site.

Tennessee Titans

Safety Markelle Martin, a sixth-round draft pick from Oklahoma State, signed with the team, CBSSports.com reports.

» NFC pressure points: West | North | South | East
» AFC pressure points: West | North | South | East

Examining who faces the most challenging season for the Jaguars and why.

Blaine Gabbert can deliver some big-time passes.

In a rookie season when he was on the field sooner than the Jaguars initially intended, the offensive framework a young quarterback needed was not in place. Injuries on the offensive line meant less-than-stellar pass protection. The receivers were a motley crew. Mike Thomas’ play dropped off after he got a new contract. Tight end Marcedes Lewis' play dropped off after he got a fat new contract.

Gabbert played poorly, drawing criticism for being panicky and, worse, scared. It’s too early to brand him. But the Jaguars' efforts now center on maximizing his chances to succeed.

He needs to pull his game up to at least average to justify the faith of Jaguars management and coaches. The Jaguars added Justin Blackmon and Laurent Robinson to the receiving corps. They’ll get Eben Britton back on the offensive line. A healed-up defense will do a better job at getting Gabbert and the offense the ball back and in better field position.

Coach Mike Mularkey, offensive coordinator Bob Bratkowski and quarterback coach Greg Olson are spending the offseason working with Gabbert. Come the season, they will craft game plans that give him the best chance at success.

The issues that contributed to holding him back have all been addressed. It’s time for us to see some of those big-time passes.

While Blaine Gabbert's rookie year was a nightmare, he won’t be a bust.

That’s the opinion of Pete Prisco, the Jacksonville-based national NFL writer for CBSSports.com, who thinks Gabbert will be generating a completely different buzz in a year.

The reality is that at times Gabbert was jumpy in the pocket early on last season. But that waned as the season moved along, as he became more comfortable. I say most of the problems were brought on by bad mechanics and a bad system.

It's fixable. Gabbert will not be a bust -- even if most of you think he will be.

In fact, I will go as far as saying that a year from now you will be talking about him as one of the rising quarterbacks in the league. I say that because he is smart, has a big arm, can make all the throws and spins his head. He's also willing to put in the work.

It’s easy to say it will be hard for Gabbert to shed the soft label that got attached to him in his rookie year. I don't feel as strongly as Prisco about a Gabbert reversal. I do feel strongly that he deserves more time to prove himself.

If Gabbert makes strides under a trio of new coaches -- head man Mike Mularkey, coordinator Bob Bratkowski and quarterbacks coach Greg Olson -- and strings together a couple good games, he can flip the conversation pretty quickly.

The Jaguars open at Minnesota, against Houston and at Indianapolis.

We’ll quickly see if Gabbert can stand in against rushers like Jared Allen, Connor Barwin, Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis.

"You watch what he does this year," one player told Prisco. "All that stuff got way overblown. He's on a mission to prove everybody wrong. I've seen guys who aren't tough. He isn't one of them."

Shahid Khan has said he would have drafted Tim Tebow.

He doesn’t intend to tell general manager Gene Smith what to do, and he wouldn’t have drafted Tebow as high as 10th, which is where the Jaguars picked in 2010. But he said the chance to add a guy of Tebow’s magnitude, with the big local tie, is rare and he would have taken it.

So ...

Now that the Denver Broncos are a serious player for Peyton Manning, the presumption is Tebow would be on his way out if Manning was in. And it’s easy to connect the dots and presume Khan would urge his people to deal for Tebow, who surely wouldn’t cost a great deal given the limited market for him.

But no one with the Jaguars has indicated any interest in Tebow right now. No one who covers the Jaguars has reported they’d want him.

A new coaching staff is in place, and it’s looking to fix Blaine Gabbert and find a quality veteran backup to stand behind him.

Where would Tebow fit in that plan?

I don’t think he does.

While Khan said he would have drafted Tebow a couple years ago, he didn’t say he’d pounce on a chance to get him now. He’s got to trust the quarterback brain trust he’s put in place: coach Mike Mularkey, offensive coordinator Bob Bratkowski and quarterback coach Greg Olson.

I’m guessing they feel like they’ve got a project in rebuilding Gabbert and don’t need another in Tebow.

The Jaguars have cap money and big needs at receiver and defensive end. That's where Khan should be bold.

With the offseason in full swing, let’s take a look at one major question facing each AFC South team as it begins preparations for the 2012 season:

HOUSTON TEXANS

Can they keep Mario Williams?

He’s an incredible pass-rushing talent most every team would love to have. Yet the Texans might be in a position where they have no choice but to watch him move on as an unrestricted free agent.

They should have had planned better and not have allowed themselves to be in a position where the franchise tag is an impossibility. They cannot tag the defensive end-turned-outside linebacker for $22 million, so they either have to sign him or allow him to test the market. He talks affectionately about the Texans and what the franchise did for him, and that leads some to be optimistic about the team’s chances to hold on to him.

But once he’s out there and being courted, things can change in a big way with big dollars on the table.

Connor Barwin and Brooks Reed are great talents, but they’d be better, and the entire defense would be better, if Williams were part of it.

It would be difficult for the Texans to watch Williams lift someone else's defense and put up big sack numbers. He’s also been hurt a lot, however, and if that continues, maybe there won’t be so much regret if he moves on.

INDIANAPOLIS COLTS

How does the Peyton Manning saga sort out?

It’s widely presumed the team is parting ways with the four-time MVP quarterback.

It would have been impossible to imagine a year ago. But several unlikely developments have all come together at the same time -- the uncertainty surrounding Manning’s arm; the team’s ability to draft Andrew Luck; the dismissal of Bill Polian and Chris Polian in the front office as well as coach Jim Caldwell and most of his staff; the hiring of new general manager Ryan Grigson and coach Chuck Pagano; other core players (Reggie Wayne, Jeff Saturday, Robert Mathis) reaching the end of their contracts.

The soap opera has been long and drawn out. It needs to be resolved so the focus on the Colts can be about those new leaders, Grigson and Pagano, the messages they want to send, the guys they want on the roster, and the systems they intend to run.

Owner Jim Irsay has been sloppy as he’s tried to gain upper ground in a public relations battle with Manning, who has not comported himself perfectly, either, as he’s tried to manipulate the story. But for the health of the organization and for the benefit of Manning going forward, this thing needs closure.

JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS

Who can they add to help Blaine Gabbert?

No team should do more to assess the free-agent market for wide receivers than the Jaguars, who had a terrible, insufficient group last season.

Mike Thomas can be a good slot guy, but if the Jaguars really want to maximize Gabbert’s chances of success in his second season, he needs his primary targets to be much better. Jacksonville has plenty of cap room, and a new staff can sell someone like Vincent Jackson on the chance to be an unquestioned No. 1 and be paid like it.

Beyond the people he will be throwing to and the ones who will be protecting him, Gabbert’s new coaches will be a big piece to his progress. Can coach Mike Mularkey, offensive coordinator Bob Bratkowski and quarterbacks coach Greg Olson get Gabbert more confident in the pocket and better able to focus on his reads than on the people around him?

The team has talked of having a better veteran backup behind Gabbert to help him. The Jags need that guy to be a safety net, too. It’s possible the 2012 Jaguars can compete for a playoff spot, provided they get sufficient play from their quarterback.

TENNESSEE TITANS

Can they become more of a playmaking defense?

The Titans got great contributions from several rookie defenders -- middle linebacker Colin McCarthy and defensive tackles Jurrell Casey and Karl Klug will be a big part of things going forward. So will strongside linebacker Akeem Ayers, who wasn’t as productive in his rookie season as the Titans hoped.

Will the team be able to find more playmakers to fill out their defense? Odds are cornerback Cortland Finnegan will depart as a free agent, and although the team hopes to re-sign Jordan Babineaux as one starting safety, it should be looking for an alternative to another of its free agents, Michael Griffin.

The Titans would be well served to find someone with more upside as a playmaker in Griffin’s spot. And although they still expect big things from Derrick Morgan, it’s again time to find a consistent pass-rushing defensive end.

They need to rush better from everywhere, which is why they hired Keith Millard as a multi-position pass-rush coach.

Getting bigger up front didn’t necessarily pay off the way they planned. Stopping the run first was a theme, and they finished 24th in run defense.

A quick zip around the division to catch up on some things that have happened while I had a few days off.

The trio of coaches charged with shaping Blaine Gabbert in Jacksonville is in place: coach Mike Mularkey, offensive coordinator Bob Bratkowski and quarterback coach Greg Olsen. Olsen comes to the Jaguars from the Buccaneers where he worked with Josh Freeman, who regressed badly last season. Everyone’s got a clean slate now, and these coaches will be judged largely on what they are able to make of Gabbert in his second season.

The Colts' list of candidates to be the new head coach is not going to excite the general population. There seems to be a lot of buzz about Jim Tressel, and it appears he’s met with the team twice, but we don’t know who else has and it may be a mistake to label him the front-runner. It’s funny: When the team brought him aboard as a meager replay consultant, we tried to find a connection and label him as a Bill Polian guy, a Chris Polian guy or a Jim Caldwell guy. Whether he’s the next coach or not, it turns out he was a Jim Irsay guy.

Dave McGinnis has been a valuable member of the Titans' coaching staff for years. He’s left to re-join Jeff Fisher in St. Louis. While Mike Munchak will miss McGinnis as a sounding board, the addition of Keith Millard as a pass-rushing coach looks like a smart one. The Titans have not traditionally rushed the passer well from beyond the defensive line. The league is specializing, and having a coach who goes beyond positions to teach a set of skills is a fresh approach in Tennessee.

Texans center Chris Myers, Texans defensive lineman Antonio Smith and Jaguars special-teamer Montell Owens were added to the AFC Pro Bowl roster. Wade Phillips was named assistant coach of the year by the Pro Football Writers of America and Pro Football Weekly. Congrats to all.

Mike Mularkey traded up, getting a top job with less talent as he went from offensive coordinator in Atlanta to coach in Jacksonville.

His replacement with the Falcons is Dirk Koetter, who was the Jaguars' offensive coordinator.

Koetter was a relatively hot prospect a year ago, interviewing for the Denver job that John Fox got, and coveted by St. Louis for an open offensive coordinator post. I was asked to assemble a staff out of all of the AFC South coaches, and with so many uncertain head coaches to choose from, I took Koetter as my top guy.

A miserable season later, his stock isn’t the same. But he’s not the one who put together a group that had one legitimate NFL receiver in Mike Thomas, or who gave a big contract to Marcedes Lewis, whose play dropped off considerably.

Calling plays for Matt Ryan throwing to Roddy White, Julio Jones and Tony Gonzalez , Koetter will be in heaven. Given the rosters right now, no one would say Mularkey's coordinator, Bob Bratkowski, has a better gig than Koetter.

I think he’s a good coach who was in a bad situation. I just tried to settle some panic as a guest on an Atlanta radio station. I’m not sure who Falcons fans wanted, but they should give Koetter a chance.

He could well be great.

Reading the coverage ...

Houston Texans

Rick Smith says he’s stood on the shoulders of Ravens GM Ozzie Newsome, writes John McClain of the Houston Chronicle. “In this business, there are people you lean on, and I’ve leaned on Ozzie. I admire so much what he’s been able to accomplish in this league, first as a tight end for the (Cleveland) Browns and then as a personnel director and general manager with the Ravens,” Smith said.

The main reason the Texans are underdogs is T.J. Yates, but the Texans believe their rookie quarterback can play well, says McClain.

Joe Flacco gets an awful lot of criticism considering his record, says Jerome Solomon of the Chronicle.

Lance Zierlein of the Chronicle’s blogs breaks down the game.

Indianapolis Colts

The cap implications of paying Peyton Manning his big bonus and then trading him make doing so impossible, says Greg Cowan of Colts Authority.

Don’t expect Ryan Grigson to get bogged down in sentimentality, says Anthony Schoettle of Indianapolis Business Journal.

Jacksonville Jaguars

Bob Bratkowski needs players to buy in, says Tania Ganguli of the Florida Times-Union. “We will run the ball and we will be physical, but we’re also going to open it up and spread it out so that we can spread the field, get the ball pushed down the field and try to generate some big plays. But it really starts with those players buying into it.”

As he picks the ingredients, Gene Smith will make or break the 2012 Jacksonville Jaguars, says David Johnson of the Florida Times-Union.

Tennessee Titans

Analysts who watched the 2011 Titans believe that Matt Hasselbeck should remain the starting quarterback ahead of Jake Locker going forward, writes John Glennon of The Tennessean.

Reading the coverage…

Houston Texans

A year ago, the Texans’ secondary was one of the worst in the NFL. Now it is one of the best. Much of the credit for the turnaround goes to free-agent signees Johnathan Joseph and Danieal Manning, says Jerome Solomon of the Houston Chronicle. “Not only have the two veterans set the tone for the young secondary in terms of hard work and professionalism – their leadership has been invaluable – they are playmakers.”

Gary Kubiak has a deep connection with Houston since he grew up there, says John McClain of the Houston Chronicle.

Wade Phillips pulled out of consideration for the Tampa Bay head coaching job, says John McClain.

McClain expects at least one upset this weekend.

Which Ravens will the Texans see, asks Braden Gall of Athlon.

Indianapolis Colts

Ryan Grigson comes to the Colts from the Eagles, and in Philadelphia the approach to roster building was far different than what the Colts did under Bill Polian, says Mike Chappell.

It looks like the Colts have committed to cleaning house, and they can’t do that without changing the coaching staff, says Adam Hughes of Naptown’s Finest. I tend to agree, but who's the replacement for Jim Caldwell if a change is made?

Jacksonville Jaguars

Bob Bratkowski will be Mike Mularkey’s offensive coordinator according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

Mel Tucker is officially staying on as the Jaguars' defensive coordinator under Mularkey, says Tania Ganguli of the Florida Times-Union.

Defensive line coach Joe Cullen is staying as well, Ganguli reports. He's an excellent and effecive position coach.

Owner Shahid Khan is considering a Twitter account, says Ganguli. Do it!

Tennessee Titans

Defensive tackle Shaun Smith knows he didn’t play as well as he should have in his first season with the Titans, says Jim Wyatt of The Tennessean.

David Climer of The Tennessean says the Titans should hold on to Chris Johnson. He will see them do just that.