It’s not just the numbers he put up last year, it’s how his presence forced defenses to play us with him as the focus.  Lesser backs might have put up similar numbers, but I think he helped open up things a little more for Blake last year where a lesser back probably wouldn’t have.  That sort of thing doesn’t show up on stat sheets directly.

I’m expecting a big year from him this year with a full offseason and improved o-line.  I’m sure he’ll still be the focal point for opposing D’s though.

I agree with this. Defenses focused on shutting him down yet he was still productive.

The article points out how well the offense played without him in the lineup. I think that is also a sign of his impact. Teams changed their defensive philosophy in those games and we stuck with our offense and pounded them because he had been successful enough to allow us to hone our style. So in reality, he was able to set up mismatches for our offense by just not being in the lineup.

---

It’s not just the numbers he put up last year, it’s how his presence forced defenses to play us with him as the focus.  Lesser backs might have put up similar numbers, but I think he helped open up things a little more for Blake last year where a lesser back probably wouldn’t have.  That sort of thing doesn’t show up on stat sheets directly.

I’m expecting a big year from him this year with a full offseason and improved o-line.  I’m sure he’ll still be the focal point for opposing D’s though.

I don't know about that. Teams stacked the box on obvious run plays and with heavy formations out. The same would happen whoever we had out there. It's just practical defensive playcalling

Teams based their play on shutting down our run game, not specifically Fournette. 

What Fournette brought above all else was the defense knew he was going to be running hard as hell as hell at them 4 quarters and in tandem with our gritty line that really wears on you as a defense. 

Saw an interesting graph a while ago that was showing average speed of RBs from quarter to quarter. Guys like Lamar Miller got slower as the game got on. Standard enough. Frank Gore and a few others like Bell maintained speed throughout.  Fournette on the other hand actually got faster the longer the game went on. Which kinda illustrates the kind of back he is.  

I think (if healthy) we will see a lot of big plays late in the game from LF7 next year. Hopefully his vision and decision making takes a step forward.

---

This article is dumb.

We drafted Yeldon after round 1, and he has like 3 TDs in his whole life. Fournette wore that Texans team down in week 1. Then he broke the Pittsburgh game wide open.

Arob, Hurns, and some other guys went down on offense but Fournette continued to be consistant. He rushed for ober 1000 yards while missing 3 games. He could have had around 1200 or 1300 yards.

He was a huge reason why we made the playoffs. Its not like Blake sat back there and threw for 5000 yards and 40 TDs. Fournette, Ramsey, Yannick, Smith, Bouye, Jackson, Campbell, Fowler, and Jack are the reason we turned our record around.

Take a RB after round 1? We did. We took TJ Yeldon, and in 2016 he barely rushed for 500 yards.

Fournette is a bonafide stud muffin. The article guy is a clown.

---

This is the kind of "article" that one writes when they look at statistics on a sheet and have never seen a single game the player who produced those stats played.

You can say he was drafted too high, and that's valid.  Many do not believe RBs should be drafted that high no matter who you are.

But to suggest he did not produce or to pretend he was not the face/identity of the franchise offensively is simple ignorance.

Take him off this team and we would not have been in the playoffs last season.  You aren't going to find what he means to this offense (in particular, Blake) buried in a stat sheet unless you're focused on the W/L column.

Agreed completely.

A few things to consider:

1.  People say, with good reason, that this is a defensive team.  But in 2016-the year before Fournette arrived, the Jaguars had the 6th ranked defense, and they still finished 3-13.

2.  That same year, the Jaguars finished 22nd in rushing.  In 2017, Fournette's first, the Jaguars finished first in rushing.

3.  In 2016, the Jaguars had a total of TEN (10) rushes of 20+ yards-seven >20 yards and 3 >40 yards.  In 2017, Fournette's first year, the Jaguars had eighteen (18) carries of 20+ or more-thirteen (13) of 20+ yards, and 5 of 40+ yards.

4.  In 2016, the Jaguars ranked 26th in time of possession, averaging 29:09 per game.  Last year, with Fournette, the Jaguars averaged 31:31 minutes per game, good for 5th in the NFL.    https://www.teamrankings.com/nfl/stat/av...2018-02-05

Anyone who followed the Jaguars closely knows how much better the Jaguars running game was with Fournette.  In the 30-9 win in Pittsburgh, the Jaguars had a stretch in the second half where they ran the ball FOURTEEN (14) straight times.  A drive of that nature was an impossibility for this team prior to Fournette's arrival.

Fournette's arrival helped instill a toughness in this offense that paid huge dividends for this team.

---

 

Worst to 1st.  Curse Reversed!

This article is dumb.

We drafted Yeldon after round 1, and he has like 3 TDs in his whole life. Fournette wore that Texans team down in week 1. Then he broke the Pittsburgh game wide open.

Arob, Hurns, and some other guys went down on offense but Fournette continued to be consistant. He rushed for ober 1000 yards while missing 3 games. He could have had around 1200 or 1300 yards.

He was a huge reason why we made the playoffs. Its not like Blake sat back there and threw for 5000 yards and 40 TDs. Fournette, Ramsey, Yannick, Smith, Bouye, Jackson, Campbell, Fowler, and Jack are the reason we turned our record around.

Take a RB after round 1? We did. We took TJ Yeldon, and in 2016 he barely rushed for 500 yards.

Fournette is a bonafide stud muffin. The article guy is a clown.

I truly understand your respect for Leonard fournette  but to say he's a huge reason why we made the playoffs is a bit misleading my friend. The defense was the main reason but blake and Leonard fournette has something to do with why they made the playoffs as well. Remember that Blake Bortles had 6 games where his QB rating was over a hundred including against Seattle which without him we would have lost that game I promise you. All I'm asking is to put everything in perspective and allow the team to get its due instead of one individual person.

---

This article is dumb.

We drafted Yeldon after round 1, and he has like 3 TDs in his whole life. Fournette wore that Texans team down in week 1. Then he broke the Pittsburgh game wide open.

Arob, Hurns, and some other guys went down on offense but Fournette continued to be consistant. He rushed for ober 1000 yards while missing 3 games. He could have had around 1200 or 1300 yards.

He was a huge reason why we made the playoffs. Its not like Blake sat back there and threw for 5000 yards and 40 TDs. Fournette, Ramsey, Yannick, Smith, Bouye, Jackson, Campbell, Fowler, and Jack are the reason we turned our record around.

Take a RB after round 1? We did. We took TJ Yeldon, and in 2016 he barely rushed for 500 yards.

Fournette is a bonafide stud muffin. The article guy is a clown.

I truly understand your respect for Leonard fournette  but to say he's a huge reason why we made the playoffs is a bit misleading my friend. The defense was the main reason but blake and Leonard fournette has something to do with why they made the playoffs as well. Remember that Blake Bortles had 6 games where his QB rating was over a hundred including against Seattle which without him we would have lost that game I promise you. All I'm asking is to put everything in perspective and allow the team to get its due instead of one individual person.

Understand precisely what you are getting at, and it is not without merit.

However, sometimes it takes one player inserted into the lineup to enable to allow all other areas of that side of the ball to operate to maximum efficiency.

---

 

Worst to 1st.  Curse Reversed!

I truly understand your respect for Leonard fournette  but to say he's a huge reason why we made the playoffs is a bit misleading my friend. The defense was the main reason but blake and Leonard fournette has something to do with why they made the playoffs as well. Remember that Blake Bortles had 6 games where his QB rating was over a hundred including against Seattle which without him we would have lost that game I promise you. All I'm asking is to put everything in perspective and allow the team to get its due instead of one individual person.

Understand precisely what you are getting at, and it is not without merit.

However, sometimes it takes one player inserted into the lineup to enable to allow all other areas of that side of the ball to operate to maximum efficiency.

That's understandable bullseye and I truly appreciate your feedback on it

---

No random second-fourth round RB could have filled the role Fournette did, leading our team to the success we had on offense.

In fact, the ineffectiveness of the second rounder we took lead us to the need for the Fournette pick.

Mjd says hi!

---

Love Fournette, but I still would have preferred the other LSU man, Jamal Adams, instead.

---

Whether you agree with the Fournette pick or not, its kind of annoying seeing people mention the few 2nd-4th rounders that succeeded (Kamara, Hunt) and not the 15 others that were non factors. I'm sure we would've been better off with Wayne Gallman than Leonard Fournette.

---

Whether you agree with the Fournette pick or not, its kind of annoying seeing people mention the few 2nd-4th rounders that succeeded (Kamara, Hunt) and not the 15 others that were non factors.  I'm sure we would've been better off with Wayne Gallman than Leonard Fournette.

The argument is not whether we'd be better off with Gallman than Fournette. 

It's whether we'd be better off with Jamal Adams or Patrick Mahomes than Fournette?

---

Love Fournette, but I still would have preferred the other LSU man, Jamal Adams, instead.

We could have taken Adams in the 1st, still drafted  Cam Robinson in the 2nd and could of had  Kareem Hunt in the 3rd. We took Smoot at pick 68 and Hunt didn't go until pick 86.

---

Whether you agree with the Fournette pick or not, its kind of annoying seeing people mention the few 2nd-4th rounders that succeeded (Kamara, Hunt) and not the 15 others that were non factors.  I'm sure we would've been better off with Wayne Gallman than Leonard Fournette.

The argument is not whether we'd be better off with Gallman than Fournette. 

It's whether we'd be better off with Jamal Adams or Patrick Mahomes than Fournette?

I've seen some fans time and time again claim that the Jags could get the same production out of a 3rd or 4th round rb, which I disagree with, that's all I'm getting at with Gallman.  "Better off" was hyperbole.

And yes,  I'd rather have a scenario in which we obtain Fournette, Cam and Dede than say Adams, Cam and James Connor/Jamaal WIlliams. Just me though.

---

While defense had a major hand in our successful season, the real reason we went from 3-13 to 10-6 is because we hired an actual NFL Head coach, who also realized that having no running game greatly reduces a QB’s chances of doing anything good.

---

Love Fournette, but I still would have preferred the other LSU man, Jamal Adams, instead.

We could have taken Adams in the 1st, still drafted  Cam Robinson in the 2nd and could of had  Kareem Hunt in the 3rd. We took Smoot at pick 68 and Hunt didn't go until pick 86.

Isn't hindsight great? 

---

'02

Ya’ll crazy Fournette was a huge difference maker. Not to mention the swag he adds to our team. If he is fully recovered next year he’s going to really win us games.

---

Whether you agree with the Fournette pick or not, its kind of annoying seeing people mention the few 2nd-4th rounders that succeeded (Kamara, Hunt) and not the 15 others that were non factors.  I'm sure we would've been better off with Wayne Gallman than Leonard Fournette.

The argument is not whether we'd be better off with Gallman than Fournette. 

It's whether we'd be better off with Jamal Adams or Patrick Mahomes than Fournette?

It is curious that a person who contends RBs should not be taken high because they can easily be found later would then turn around and advocate taking a SS in the top 5.  You can find a good SS anywhere, too.  (See: Chancellor, Kam.  See also: Lynch, John)

Mahomes or Watson?  I would get the argument for QBs.

But not SS under your established draft paradigm.

---

 

Worst to 1st.  Curse Reversed!

Ill say this much, I like Leonard Fournette and I think he was a significant contributor to the offense because of the way defenses had to gameplan against him when he was in the game, not to mention he faced 8 or 9 man boxes quite consistently throughout the year, but I wanted Deshaun Watson last year and would be remiss if I said I dont still feel that would have been the better pick. Time will tell. Certainly cant complain with how things have worked out so far though.

---

Love Fournette, but I still would have preferred the other LSU man, Jamal Adams, instead.

We could have taken Adams in the 1st, still drafted  Cam Robinson in the 2nd and could of had  Kareem Hunt in the 3rd. We took Smoot at pick 68 and Hunt didn't go until pick 86.

And we'd have known Hitler was a psycho we could've stopped his ride to power YEARS before he murdered millions of people. Hindsight really is 20/20 isn't it, not to mention I'd rather have Fournette than Hunt any day there's a reason why Hunts #s started falling off after his hot start. .

---

I'm just gonna add something to this because it's actually crazy to me the people that don't appreciate what Fournette does for this team. First off Zhe had MANY game breaking runs that most backs can't pull off and if you can't remember/can't spot them that's on you and it makes me wonder what you were actually looking at during the games? Number two, he was the fastest back in the NFL last year with the fastest clocked run at 22mph - that's unbelievable for how big he is and means he can take it to the house on any run, unlike most power backs. And finally, HE WEARS DEFENSES OUT like crazy, I think anybody that ever actually has played real tackle pad wearing football understands this. Having to tackle that guy all game and getting ran over a few times, is straight up demoralizing. Jags ended with a top five or so offense and it wasn't a coincidence that it was Fournettes first year.

---