Quote:You have put a lot of effort and verbiage into your post, but I'd like to ask a few questions and point out a few things:
1. What "looks" exactly is Reggie Wayne going to force a Defense into? Especially considering that he, by most any measure, had his worst season ever last year.
2. Do you know that Wayne has an exemplary work ethic, even higher than that of the players currently on the roster? Is this all he's brought in to do?
3. If I was a billionaire and I wanted to win football games, I'd hire a guy who has learned how to relate to people, that has good communication skills, has a high standard for himself and those around him, and has a sense of ownership of his task at hand. In other words, a coach. That's what the team has already in Jerry Sullivan so why not let him do his job?
4. Fred Taylor played in seven games and had 155 yards the one year he was in New England. Also, he had his lowest YPC value in his career there. And that team lost in the First Round of the Playoffs without Taylor recording a single stat in the game. Pretty sure that's not the example of a veteran pickup that you should use.
You miss the broader point, but to reply:
1. Just putting Wayne in the game requires defenses to adjust. Especially when the previous look had a Lee, or the rook out there. Suddenly, there's a serious threat to ANY DB in the league on the line of scrimmage.
2. I don't. But almost no one reaches the level of excellence he achieved throughout his career without copious levels of ethic in countless areas. He's an amazing player, I have great respect for his innumerable great catches.
3. I like Sullivan well enough...he should probably be the OC. Coaching is EQUALLY important to player skill and talent. A great coach is priceless. I honestly don't know, has Sullivan been on a Superbowl championship team? I don't know much about him, but he seems good, because we have a good group. But they are hurt all the time, and some of that is on him then.
4. I recognize Freddy wasn't great 'on the field' up there. Who was he mentoring that year, that's what I'd want to know. They made the playoffs...I'd settle for that right now.
jmho - that's what fandom is all about!
And listen, I'm not advocating for a team full of also-rans like the Skins did a few years back. But one (or two on this team) would be very helpful to the future. As the other poster said, we're not gonna win the big-one this year anyway.
We need an identity. What do we want the Jaguars to be about? What is our strongest position? Right now I guess it's TE, because Julius is our elite player. edit: I neglected Chris Clemons... he represents my point. He has strengthened our D-line immensely in ways that cannot be measured by mere statistics.
We once were a quick-strike lightning passing offense supported by Freddy's magic. We were an AFC central smashmouth contender. Division rivals to the mighty Steelers, and giving them a run for their money. They set OUR standard because they were the target. Losing that division was a catastrophe for our franchise. I still rue that day.
