The NFL postseason not only sent Aaron Rodgers’ stock soaring and exposed flaws in a pair of No. 1 seeds, it’s also a stark reminder to the Jaguars of how far they must progress to become a postseason force.
Recall what owner Wayne Weaver said in his season-ending news conference, telling the story of a Jaguars player convinced his team was on the verge of a special season. He put his thumb and index finger close together, saying to Weaver: “We’re THIS close.”
Yes and no. Yes, they were one win away from being an AFC South champion. But in reality, the Jaguars are several impact players away from being special, as was visually evident when the NFL decided its final four.
Look at the survivors’ body of work: the Pittsburgh Steelers, New York Jets, Green Bay Packers and Chicago Bears are Nos. 2, 3, 5 and 9, respectively, in total defense. Pittsburgh (49) and Green Bay (47) also have the most quarterback sacks of anybody in the league, and all four had at least 30 takeaways this season. The Jaguars were at or near the bottom in all those categories, which explains their mind-numbing propensity for giving up big plays.
The best remedy for general manager Gene Smith, who is at the East-West Shrine game practices in Orlando this week, is to hit a home run or two in the April draft. They’ve got to fortify safety, cornerback and two linebacker spots.
When you examine defenses still in the Super Bowl hunt, there’s a collection of players who are game-changers. For the Steelers, it’s Troy Polamalu, James Harrison and LaMarr Woodley. The Jets have Darrelle Revis and Shaun Ellis. The Packers have Clay Matthews and an emerging Tramon Williams. The Bears have Julius Peppers, Brian Urlacher and Lance Briggs.
That’s the problem with the Jaguars. Once Aaron Kampman went out with a torn anterior cruciate ligament, there’s nobody on their defense to truly fear.
Daryl Smith and Terrance Knighton were productive players but not in the elite class at their position.
How can any NFL team expect to make a playoff run without a solid defense? The only way is to have an elite quarterback igniting an explosive offense, like Drew Brees did for the New Orleans Saints in 2009 and Peyton Manning did for the Indianapolis Colts.
Which leads us to another Jaguars dilemma — quarterback. We keep hearing from Smith and coach Jack Del Rio that they can win with David Garrard. Sure, as long as the running game is stout and the defense isn’t a liability.
The playoffs are another reminder of how badly the Jaguars must draft and develop a quarterback. The Jets’ Mark Sanchez was no better than average this season, but the second-year quarterback sure rose to the occasion Sunday, outperforming Tom Brady in a 28-21 win over heavily favored New England.
Sanchez isn’t an elite guy, but he’s making critical strides, and that’s bad news for the Jaguars. Too many AFC teams now have younger quarterbacks with more upside than Garrard. You can be skeptical of Sanchez, but he has four road playoff wins, which is more than the Jaguars have in their 16-year history.
Making a 2011 playoff run isn’t totally unrealistic for the Jaguars. But as the NFL playoffs bear out, they need major upgrades. And fast.
