Quote:There is no way I would give up on Cyprien.  Get that defense better and Cyprien can be a player.  The collective fan base gave up on Reggie Nelson, he got in a better situation and become a much better player.  Same very well could occur with Cyp.  I'd not be ready to cut bait.  Just need to improve the team.

 

The difference between Cyp and Nelson is that Nelson showed the ability/potential to be a ballhawk his rookie season. The team just switched schemes the next year, Nelson couldn't grasp the scene, and subsequently completely fell apart. He definitely needed to be traded and get a clean slate. Cyp, at his absolute peak that we've seen, looked like a guy who could tackle and every once in a while blow a play up in the backfield. Cyp hasn't flashed nearly as much as Nelson did.

 

Speaking of Cyp, and to a lesser extent Darius Slay who was mentioned by D6 up above, I went looking for a quip from Caldwell I heard earlier today (and referenced in another thread) and found this interesting tidbit;

 

Quote:Before the second round, in which Jacksonville held the first pick, the Jaguars had John Cyprien, Zach Ertz and Darius Slay atop their board. With three teams inquiring about a potential trade-up, Jacksonville ran the numbers on the probability one of those guys would be left in the 40s. Statistics showed it was likely. But Caldwell decided he liked Cyprien too much to risk losing him and took the Florida International safety with the No. 33 pick. The other two players were gone by 36.

 

Source: http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap1000000...ebut-draft

 

Definitely interesting to think how different this team would look had they gone with either Ertz or Slay instead.

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