12-22-2020, 12:41 PM
This has definitely been the most exciting week of my life as a Jaguars fan. As you guys know, I'm one of the more emotional guys on the board. I'm going to be 50 years old in March and I've been a Jaguars fan since the team was established. That's half my life. I had very high expectations for this team in the beginning. We started our franchise by becoming a powerhouse in the early years. We had an exciting offense with guys like Fred Taylor, Tony Boselli, Jimmy Smith and Keenan McCardell and we had a very capable QB in Mark Brunell. We had a stingy defense and I thought for sure we'd be Super Bowl champs sooner rather than later. Well, after several years with close calls, those guys began to leave the team and things started to change. Once realignment happened, we had more bad years than good ones. Once Brunell was no longer a Jag, we struggled to find a good starting QB. No matter who we put in there, it seemed like one failed experiment after another.
Every year I would tell myself to temper my expectations and it seems like every season I'd come away feeling kicked in the teeth. I'd come to expect that we'd have a losing record year after year. I used to look forward to the draft, but the last couple of season's we've been so bad that I didn't even think that would help. Then with all the controversy between players and the front office occurring and several of our few star players wanting out, I was sure we'd languish at the bottom of the league for years to come. I was sure we'd be picking #2, take Fields and have yet another failed experiment at the QB position. Then a miracle happened. When the Jets beat the Rams, it was like a sign that I should never give up hope. That pick means EVERYTHING. It means we have a chance to draft a guy I believe we had ABSOLUTELY no shot at. A QB that can turn this franchise around within 3 years.
I'll admit I was not that big a believer in Trevor Lawrence early on, but I also did not spend much time watching him play, because he was an underclassman and I really only watch guys who are in draft eligible years. It was last season that I saw this kid late in the season. I can't remember which game it was, but he was sitting in the pocket scanning the field and he threw a long pass for a completion. At the same time he released the ball, he was absolutely blasted. He took a shot to the chest that I was sure would've resulted in a broken sternum or a collapsed lung. He laid there a few minutes while the coaches and trainers attended to him and he was helped off the field. I thought for sure he was done. It was only a few plays later when he came back on the field and picked right back up where he left off. Not only is this kid a winner, but he's tough as nails and he refuses to be held back. Ever since then, I've been a huge fan, but still I thought we had absolutely no shot at him, especially since we beat the Colts in week 1.
Since that time, I have been adamant about drafting Zach Wilson of BYU if he declares. I had him rated almost exactly the same as Lawrence. While I believe Wilson's ceiling may be a hair higher, Lawrence is definitely the safer pick. He's proven it against better competition and has the better frame, standing a full 3 inches taller. I would've been thrilled with either pick, but with Wilson, there is no guarantee he would even declare and to be honest, I didn't trust this team to even pick him. I believed we'd take Fields at #2 and have a "bust" on our hands, yet again. By moving up that single position to the #1 spot, everything has changed. It almost guarantees that we will get Lawrence and finally, we will have what we've all been wishing for for many, many years, a good (if not great) QB.
I finally have hope that my dream of seeing the Jags win a Super Bowl in my lifetime can still happen. That one position that every team needs to achieve such a goal is now in reach. All we have to do is lose the next 2 games. Put every decent player we have on IR or the Covid list. Run the ball every play behind backup O-Linemen. Punt the ball on 3rd down. do whatever it takes to hold onto that #1 selection. Then send luxury gifts to Lawrence and all his family members. Make him want to be here and know that he will be appreciated. Let him know that the team and the fans desperately want him to be a Jaguar. This is a franchise changing moment. We've suffered for so long, we cannot mess this up. If we do, they might as well pack up and go to London next season. This is our chance to change our fortunes for the next 10-15 years. We'd finally have that one player to build an entire team around, like other winning franchises have done.
Every year I would tell myself to temper my expectations and it seems like every season I'd come away feeling kicked in the teeth. I'd come to expect that we'd have a losing record year after year. I used to look forward to the draft, but the last couple of season's we've been so bad that I didn't even think that would help. Then with all the controversy between players and the front office occurring and several of our few star players wanting out, I was sure we'd languish at the bottom of the league for years to come. I was sure we'd be picking #2, take Fields and have yet another failed experiment at the QB position. Then a miracle happened. When the Jets beat the Rams, it was like a sign that I should never give up hope. That pick means EVERYTHING. It means we have a chance to draft a guy I believe we had ABSOLUTELY no shot at. A QB that can turn this franchise around within 3 years.
I'll admit I was not that big a believer in Trevor Lawrence early on, but I also did not spend much time watching him play, because he was an underclassman and I really only watch guys who are in draft eligible years. It was last season that I saw this kid late in the season. I can't remember which game it was, but he was sitting in the pocket scanning the field and he threw a long pass for a completion. At the same time he released the ball, he was absolutely blasted. He took a shot to the chest that I was sure would've resulted in a broken sternum or a collapsed lung. He laid there a few minutes while the coaches and trainers attended to him and he was helped off the field. I thought for sure he was done. It was only a few plays later when he came back on the field and picked right back up where he left off. Not only is this kid a winner, but he's tough as nails and he refuses to be held back. Ever since then, I've been a huge fan, but still I thought we had absolutely no shot at him, especially since we beat the Colts in week 1.
Since that time, I have been adamant about drafting Zach Wilson of BYU if he declares. I had him rated almost exactly the same as Lawrence. While I believe Wilson's ceiling may be a hair higher, Lawrence is definitely the safer pick. He's proven it against better competition and has the better frame, standing a full 3 inches taller. I would've been thrilled with either pick, but with Wilson, there is no guarantee he would even declare and to be honest, I didn't trust this team to even pick him. I believed we'd take Fields at #2 and have a "bust" on our hands, yet again. By moving up that single position to the #1 spot, everything has changed. It almost guarantees that we will get Lawrence and finally, we will have what we've all been wishing for for many, many years, a good (if not great) QB.
I finally have hope that my dream of seeing the Jags win a Super Bowl in my lifetime can still happen. That one position that every team needs to achieve such a goal is now in reach. All we have to do is lose the next 2 games. Put every decent player we have on IR or the Covid list. Run the ball every play behind backup O-Linemen. Punt the ball on 3rd down. do whatever it takes to hold onto that #1 selection. Then send luxury gifts to Lawrence and all his family members. Make him want to be here and know that he will be appreciated. Let him know that the team and the fans desperately want him to be a Jaguar. This is a franchise changing moment. We've suffered for so long, we cannot mess this up. If we do, they might as well pack up and go to London next season. This is our chance to change our fortunes for the next 10-15 years. We'd finally have that one player to build an entire team around, like other winning franchises have done.
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