(02-12-2021, 05:30 PM)homebiscuit Wrote: Interesting tidbit of Jags team history from Vic Ketchman:

Mike from Bridgeport, CT
Extremely happy to see Byron Leftwich have his moment in the sun. He's not far from being a hot head coaching candidate. I often wonder what if Leftwich didn't break his ankle vs. Arizona in 2005. The prior week he had the best game of his career, passing for three TDs and rushing for one while leading the Jaguars to a road win in Tennessee. They were ascending with a 7-3 record before the injury. His playing career was never the same after that moment. It was a blessing in disguise for David Garrard, but I've always felt badly for Byron and wish things worked out better than they did in Jacksonville.
You're right about the game in Arizona being a turning point in Byron's career, but that might've been  little more than a coincidence. Byron was never a mobile quarterback. The real turning point in Byron's career occurred during preparation for a game the following year, I think it was. Byron came to the stadium on a Friday morning and told the trainer of an injury; I think it was an ankle sprain and it was cloaked in mystery. Jack Del Rio was furious. He believed Byron had hidden the injury during the week, which meant the Jaguars had largely wasted a big chunk of their preparation for the game. At that point, the relationship between Byron and Jack became irreparable.