Along the lines of what I expressed earlier this month,  I think it's in the Jaguars best interest to retain Dave Caldwell   However, from a Jaguars perspective,  an extremely high priority for Caldwell needs to be to have the coaching in place that provides the best chance of maximizing Blake Bortles'  potential.   One of the most important questions,  if not the most important question in the HC interview process in 2017 ( assuming a HC change takes place )  should be what is your plan to get the most out of Bortles,  including improving the technical facets of his game?    

---

Along the lines of what I expressed earlier this month, I think it's in the Jaguars best interest to retain Dave Caldwell However, from a Jaguars perspective, an extremely high priority for Caldwell needs to be to have the coaching in place that provides the best chance of maximizing Blake Bortles' potential. One of the most important questions, if not the most important question in the HC interview process in 2017 ( assuming a HC change takes place ) should be what is your plan to get the most out of Bortles, including improving the technical facets of his game?

That's why Todd Haley would head my list of coaching candidates. Big Ben was already really good under Arians but he elevated his game even more under Haley.

---

"Before you criticize a man, walk a mile in his shoes. That way, if he gets angry, he's a mile away and barefoot."

That's why Todd Haley would head my list of coaching candidates. Big Ben was already really good under Arians but he elevated his game even more under Haley.

 

  It certainly would make a great amount of sense for the Jaguars to interview Todd Haley.   I can't recall the specifics of what went wrong with Haley in Kansas City.   But like you said,  his work with Big Ben has been impressive.   

 

 Regarding the Steelers Offense under Haley,  one of the other aspects that has jumped out is they have overcome many key Offensive Line injuries to rank as one of the most effective Offensive units in the NFL.

---

I am in the middle about Dave Caldwell right now. And the reason being is that.

 

1. He completely destroyed this roster four years ago. He didn't just dismantle it. He essentially went Office Space demolition scene on this roster. He's had a few hits and a few misses. That's normal for most general managers. I think he's a capable man for the job. But I think he made a crucial mistake four years ago when he hired Bradley instead of Roman. And I can't remember if he couldn't sign Roman because he wanted to stay in San Francisco at the time or if it was because he felt better about Bradley.

 

2. I think overall our fan base knows what a bad general manager looks like. And how toxic it can be for a franchise. We suffered a great deal towards the end of James Harris' reign and it didn't improve at all under Gene Smith. Harris had an entire draft class in and out of the league within like a two - three year time span. Not a single player I think from his 2008 draft class is relevant in the NFL anymore. And Gene Smith, oddly enough, some of the players he brought here didn't pan out but went onto find success elsewhere. Most notably Rashard Jennings with the Giants and Zach Miller with the Bears.

 

But, depending on the rest of  the 2016 season shakes out. It's highly probable he's kicked out the door along with Bradley and the rest of the staff. And it's also highly likely that the next coaching staff and general manager will come in here and add onto something that could have an interesting legacy mixed with Caldwell's choices and the new regime's choices. I really do see this being a possibility. I just wish Khan would speak out and up already to let this fanbase know he truly cares.

---

"What do I know of cultured ways, the gilt, the craft and the lie? I, who was born in a naked land and bred in the open sky. The subtle tongue, the sophist guile, they fail when the broadswords sing; Rush in and die, dogs - I was a man before I was a king."

One potential reason to get rid of Caldwell is his link with Blake.

Caldwell is unlikely to give up on Blake already and that may impact potential HCs like Haley/McDaniels/Shanahan who might not want to work with Bortles and may want their own hand picked or drafted QB instead

This was my concern in the other Dave thread last week. If a new head coach thinks he is going to be handcuffed to Blake he ain't coming here. We're going to get stuck with someone subpar who doesn't have any other options. 

---

I've always been a proponent of the HC/GM coming and going at the same time. After the past couple of years, I'm changing a bit on this and willing to give DC another chance at a HC and possibly a QB. We've seen what bad GMs do, and it can completely ruin a team's roster. I know DC isn't a bad GM. I think he's slightly above average with the talent he's acquired. He *may* be even better than that if we believe the problem is with coaching and possibly a struggling QB.

 

My main concern with DC is that, while every GM will miss, DC is now starting to get a bit of a trend of picking the wrong players. What I mean by this is, the NFL is very fluid with rosters and even scheme (3-4 vs 4-3 for example). If your team is a 4-3 team and there's an undersized pass rusher that is clearly a 3-4 OLB that is talented and you decide to take a CB instead? I can understand how you'd miss, because you can't compare apples-to-oranges (LB vs. CB). But if you take a QB and one taken after him outperforms? Then you can kind of wonder.

 

Example:

 

In 2013, I wanted Ansah. DC took Luke. Now, you can argue well...different positions. But then how do you argue Luke over Lane (yes I know he's been suspended)? They play the same position, a position you needed. To me, this means...you missed and took the wrong guy.

 

In 2014, same thing with Blake vs. Carr. Right now, Carr looks like the clear winner. How did DC miss this? To makes matters worse, we should have been around Carr and knew everything about him during Senior Bowl. And yet we went with Bortles.

 

2015, you can say different positions and maybe scheme...but Fowler over Leonard Williams? This draft was also one of the deepest RB drafts in recent memory. Gurley and Gordon were the clear cut leaders in the eyes of many, and then it bunches up with David Johnson, Ajayi, Tevin Coleman. Then next tier was Yeldon and Duke (i feel like i'm forgetting one more name, oh the RB from Detroit). Dave takes Yeldon higher than most mocks had him. So, again...apples-to-apples comparison...he took Yeldon over Johnson, Coleman, and now Ajayi is flashing.

---

This was my concern in the other Dave thread last week. If a new head coach thinks he is going to be handcuffed to Blake he ain't coming here. We're going to get stuck with someone subpar who doesn't have any other options. 

 

  What you mentioned reminded me of something I believe would be in the best interest for the Jaguars to do in the interview process for the next HC and/ or if Shad Khan elects to go in another direction at the G.M. position.   All of the candidates should be asked what their candid opinions of Blake Bortles are.  

 

   If the Jags are looking for a new G.M.,  a consultant with NFL G.M. experience should be part of the process.   IMO,  you need expertise in terms of the correct questions being asked.   The Khan's are highly skilled business people but they don't have the football background to conduct G.M. interviews w/o an experienced NFL person in the room.  

---

I've always been a proponent of the HC/GM coming and going at the same time. After the past couple of years, I'm changing a bit on this and willing to give DC another chance at a HC and possibly a QB. We've seen what bad GMs do, and it can completely ruin a team's roster. I know DC isn't a bad GM. I think he's slightly above average with the talent he's acquired. He *may* be even better than that if we believe the problem is with coaching and possibly a struggling QB.


My main concern with DC is that, while every GM will miss, DC is now starting to get a bit of a trend of picking the wrong players. What I mean by this is, the NFL is very fluid with rosters and even scheme (3-4 vs 4-3 for example). If your team is a 4-3 team and there's an undersized pass rusher that is clearly a 3-4 OLB that is talented and you decide to take a CB instead? I can understand how you'd miss, because you can't compare apples-to-oranges (LB vs. CB). But if you take a QB and one taken after him outperforms? Then you can kind of wonder.


Example:


In 2013, I wanted Ansah. DC took Luke. Now, you can argue well...different positions. But then how do you argue Luke over Lane (yes I know he's been suspended)? They play the same position, a position you needed. To me, this means...you missed and took the wrong guy.


In 2014, same thing with Blake vs. Carr. Right now, Carr looks like the clear winner. How did DC miss this? To makes matters worse, we should have been around Carr and knew everything about him during Senior Bowl. And yet we went with Bortles.


2015, you can say different positions and maybe scheme...but Fowler over Leonard Williams? This draft was also one of the deepest RB drafts in recent memory. Gurley and Gordon were the clear cut leaders in the eyes of many, and then it bunches up with David Johnson, Ajayi, Tevin Coleman. Then next tier was Yeldon and Duke (i feel like i'm forgetting one more name, oh the RB from Detroit). Dave takes Yeldon higher than most mocks had him. So, again...apples-to-apples comparison...he took Yeldon over Johnson, Coleman, and now Ajayi is flashing.

To be fair Luke was the "safest" pick in the draft and was widely applauded for that. Ansah was incredibly raw and a big risk. Don't blame Caldwell for doing safe in year 1.

---

As a GM, you shouldn't be expected to hit a homerun with every decision you make, but you have to wonder how someone like Bradley can manage to slip through the cracks and blow some smoke in front of a group of NFL professionals and get a million dollar paying head coaching gig

---

This was my concern in the other Dave thread last week. If a new head coach thinks he is going to be handcuffed to Blake he ain't coming here. We're going to get stuck with someone subpar who doesn't have any other options. 

It's hard to imagine Dave would limit the scope of a coaching search by stipulating the new guy must salvage Bortles. 

 

Dave seems smarter than that to me.  I think he'd be open to a new coach requesting a new QB (or legitimate competition brought in at the very least.)

 

No way to know at the moment where DC stands on this. 

---

  What you mentioned reminded me of something I believe would be in the best interest for the Jaguars to do in the interview process for the next HC and/ or if Shad Khan elects to go in another direction at the G.M. position.   All of the candidates should be asked what their candid opinions of Blake Bortles are.  

 

   If the Jags are looking for a new G.M.,  a consultant with NFL G.M. experience should be part of the process.   IMO,  you need expertise in terms of the correct questions being asked.   The Khan's are highly skilled business people but they don't have the football background to conduct G.M. interviews w/o an experienced NFL person in the room.  

Khan has been good about bringing in consultants when he interviewed GM and HC candidates previously, and hiring entire advisory committees when he has been looking for Fulham managers. He will do due diligence at the minimum I have no doubt about that. 

---

It's hard to imagine Dave would limit the scope of a coaching search by stipulating the new guy must salvage Bortles. 

 

Dave seems smarter than that to me.  I think he'd be open to a new coach requesting a new QB (or legitimate competition brought in at the very least.)

 

No way to know at the moment where DC stands on this. 

I think Dave would be ok with bringing in new "competition" in the form of a Hoyer/Fitzpatrick type that is always floating around. 

 

But if say Todd Haley said he thinks they needs to spend our first rounder to get his so and so Big Ben of the future (Kizer is already getting some of those comps) or McDaniels says he thinks they need to give up the expensive pick trade capital it would take to get Garoppolo...I'm not so sure Dave would be willing to essentially cut bait with Blake to get the hottest HC candidate.

---

To be fair Luke was the "safest" pick in the draft and was widely applauded for that. Ansah was incredibly raw and a big risk. Don't blame Caldwell for doing safe in year 1.

 

And as I said...I'm not even holding him to Ansah vs. Luke. Its Luke vs. Lane, and the other players that he took at one position (CB, RB, DB) who have been outperformed by a player of the same position that was drafted later. I can understand if you miss when you feel you took a player of need vs. one at another position. But its a bigger red flag for me if its the same position, because that means you just missed...completely...no excuses.

---

I am in the middle about Dave Caldwell right now. And the reason being is that.

 

1. He completely destroyed this roster four years ago. He didn't just dismantle it. He essentially went Office Space demolition scene on this roster. He's had a few hits and a few misses. That's normal for most general managers. I think he's a capable man for the job. But I think he made a crucial mistake four years ago when he hired Bradley instead of Roman. And I can't remember if he couldn't sign Roman because he wanted to stay in San Francisco at the time or if it was because he felt better about Bradley.

 

2. I think overall our fan base knows what a bad general manager looks like. And how toxic it can be for a franchise. We suffered a great deal towards the end of James Harris' reign and it didn't improve at all under Gene Smith. Harris had an entire draft class in and out of the league within like a two - three year time span. Not a single player I think from his 2008 draft class is relevant in the NFL anymore. And Gene Smith, oddly enough, some of the players he brought here didn't pan out but went onto find success elsewhere. Most notably Rashard Jennings with the Giants and Zach Miller with the Bears.

 

But, depending on the rest of  the 2016 season shakes out. It's highly probable he's kicked out the door along with Bradley and the rest of the staff. And it's also highly likely that the next coaching staff and general manager will come in here and add onto something that could have an interesting legacy mixed with Caldwell's choices and the new regime's choices. I really do see this being a possibility. I just wish Khan would speak out and up already to let this fanbase know he truly cares.

 

Roman, really? The guy who was practically ran out of SF after one good year?

 

The guy who was fired by a Buffalo team who is suddenly playing better offensively? 

---

This was my concern in the other Dave thread last week. If a new head coach thinks he is going to be handcuffed to Blake he ain't coming here. We're going to get stuck with someone subpar who doesn't have any other options.

All depends on DC I guess and he plays his cards very close to his chest. Got to consider who we are up against in the head coach hunt too, the colts job with Luck will likely be the most sought after for the offensive guru types.

---

Roman, really? The guy who was practically ran out of SF after one good year?

 

The guy who was fired by a Buffalo team who is suddenly playing better offensively? 

 

What do you mean one good year? He went to San Francisco with Jim Harbaugh and was there the entire time until San Francisco was stupid enough to fire Harbaugh. Roman was there and helped resurrect Alex Smith's dying career and the last time Colin Kaepernick looked like an NFL quarterback was under his coaching. Not anybody else. And as far as him being fired by Rex Ryan in Buffalo? What's your point? Oh, so because the Bills beat a Bradyless Patriots team and edge out a weak Miami team after they fired him that somehow makes him a bad offensive coordinator? They hung 33 points on Arizona before he got fired. And they've beaten chump teams like SF and LA who don't have any offensive firepower to combat any opponent....

---

"What do I know of cultured ways, the gilt, the craft and the lie? I, who was born in a naked land and bred in the open sky. The subtle tongue, the sophist guile, they fail when the broadswords sing; Rush in and die, dogs - I was a man before I was a king."

It's hard to imagine Dave would limit the scope of a coaching search by stipulating the new guy must salvage Bortles.


Dave seems smarter than that to me. I think he'd be open to a new coach requesting a new QB (or legitimate competition brought in at the very least.)


No way to know at the moment where DC stands on this.

More like a coach that is more experienced at finding better position coach.

---

Formerly known as The Real Joker

What do you mean one good year? He went to San Francisco with Jim Harbaugh and was there the entire time until San Francisco was stupid enough to fire Harbaugh. Roman was there and helped resurrect Alex Smith's dying career and the last time Colin Kaepernick looked like an NFL quarterback was under his coaching. Not anybody else. And as far as him being fired by Rex Ryan in Buffalo? What's your point? Oh, so because the Bills beat a Bradyless Patriots team and edge out a weak Miami team after they fired him that somehow makes him a bad offensive coordinator? They hung 33 points on Arizona before he got fired. And they've beaten chump teams like SF and LA who don't have any offensive firepower to combat any opponent....

His teams almost always lead the league in delay of game penalties and his play calling is pretty bad. Even with the 49ers.

---

I think Dave would be ok with bringing in new "competition" in the form of a Hoyer/Fitzpatrick type that is always floating around. 

 

But if say Todd Haley said he thinks they needs to spend our first rounder to get his so and so Big Ben of the future (Kizer is already getting some of those comps) or McDaniels says he thinks they need to give up the expensive pick trade capital it would take to get Garoppolo...I'm not so sure Dave would be willing to essentially cut bait with Blake to get the hottest HC candidate.

Based on?

---

Based on?

Just the fact that he has been extremely resistant with giving up on his previous pet projects. He tried to shoehorn Joeckel in at LG without bringing in any real competition in case the position switch didn't work out. Cyprien never got any competition. Chris Smith sticking around despite a glaringly superior prospect being drafted this year. Gus being here past his expiration date.

 

I think the better question would be what evidence has Dave shown that he is willing to admit a mistake on an investment with a strong alternative solution? Much less his career defining hand picked QB investment. 

---