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Ventrell Miller in Line for MASSIVE Season · Duval Daily: A Jacksonville Jaguars Podcast

• 0:00
  [SPEAKER_00]: Jacksonville Jaguar's fans welcome in to do vault daily presented by jing Jack.com.
• 0:03
  [SPEAKER_00]: I'm Jordan Aluga.
• 0:04
  [SPEAKER_00]: I think so much for being here Thursday, May 7th.
• 0:07
  [SPEAKER_00]: We've been right along towards rookie mini camp.
• 0:10
  [SPEAKER_00]: We will be previewing that tomorrow.
• 0:13
  [SPEAKER_00]: But for right now, I want to talk about a player who's not a rookie.
• 0:16
  [SPEAKER_00]: A player who I did not put on my breakout list.
• 0:19
  [SPEAKER_00]: But a player who I wanted to do a full video for now that the draft and free agency has come in past, I honestly think Ventral Miller is in line for a massive year.
• 0:31
  [SPEAKER_00]: I've talked about this on the channel before.
• 0:32
  [SPEAKER_00]: We did a full film study of every single rep that he had in 2025.
• 0:38
  [SPEAKER_00]: I came away very impressed.
• 0:41
  [SPEAKER_00]: uh... by by what ventricular was able to do and the two games that he started because deven Lloyd was injured and in the rest of the games where he filled in at different spots at different times right but he was entering
• 0:56
  [SPEAKER_00]: 2025 in a competition with Devon Lloyd for the starting linebacker job, and in week one they were still competing, but Devon Lloyd played so well and made so many plays that he really earned the job in my opinion.
• 1:11
  [SPEAKER_00]: Devon Lloyd did start the game in week one against the Panthers, he had 22 reps defensively.
• 1:17
  [SPEAKER_00]: Ventral Miller had 16, like they were in competition during that game and Devon Lloyd came out the winner.
• 1:24
  [SPEAKER_00]: And Devin Lloyd was in a contract year.
• 1:26
  [SPEAKER_00]: He had reason to be motivated beyond just wanting to do the best for his team.
• 1:31
  [SPEAKER_00]: That was your opportunity to go get the bag and Devin Lloyd was able to do that.
• 1:36
  [SPEAKER_00]: But Ventral Miller, when he was on the field, played damn well last year.
• 1:41
  [SPEAKER_00]: And I know people have talked about his past coverage, which was a concern for me in turning 2025.
• 1:50
  [SPEAKER_00]: I think when you look at what he's able to do in a zone defense in past coverage and an Anthony Campanylei defense specifically and especially in a defense where they try to not put you in a negative position as a linebacker, off ball linebacker as much in coverage.
• 2:06
  [SPEAKER_00]: And honestly, they get you off the field of decent amount, right?
• 2:10
  [SPEAKER_00]: And coverage.
• 2:10
  [SPEAKER_00]: Get three safeties on the field, do whatever they want to do.
• 2:13
  [SPEAKER_00]: Get some funky looks out there on these clear passing situations.
• 2:18
  [SPEAKER_00]: You're not out there as much as a typical, you know, weak side linebacker would be.
• 2:24
  [SPEAKER_00]: So there's a lot of factors that I do think can help ventral Miller, the same way they helped Devon Lloyd in this Anthony Campanila defense, for sure.
• 2:35
  [SPEAKER_00]: But, again, I came away very impressed from all 250 plus reps, whatever it was from ventral Miller, and then extrapolating his numbers from his two starts.
• 2:47
  [SPEAKER_00]: That's where it's like, okay, this guy could really get paid next year.
• 2:51
  [SPEAKER_00]: But the reason for all this is the Jaguars did let Devin Lloyd walk in free agency.
• 2:57
  [SPEAKER_00]: They didn't sign any linebackers in free agency, at least not yet.
• 3:01
  [SPEAKER_00]: They still could do that.
• 3:03
  [SPEAKER_00]: I don't think they need to do that.
• 3:04
  [SPEAKER_00]: And they didn't draft an off-ball linebacker until the seventh round.
• 3:08
  [SPEAKER_00]: So, ventral Miller's current competition for
• 3:12
  [SPEAKER_00]: weekside linebacker spot is really just Branson Combs who's a player I put on my possible breakout list yesterday and the reason I did that was less because I thought he would actually beat Ventura Miller out but more because I thought if he does get the opportunity to get on the field I think Branson Combs will play well.
• 3:30
  [SPEAKER_00]: Basically I think the Jaguars have a really good situation at linebacker.
• 3:34
  [SPEAKER_00]: Murray's over here, causing a ruckus.
• 3:36
  [SPEAKER_00]: And again, going back to just like the numbers for Ventral Miller, if you extrapolate his numbers from his two starts, you're talking about 119 tackles.
• 3:46
  [SPEAKER_00]: And of course, extrapolating numbers from two games is a bit of a reach.
• 3:50
  [SPEAKER_00]: But I think these numbers reflect what you saw on the field as well, not just in those two games, but again, over 200 plus starts, reps last year.
• 4:04
  [SPEAKER_00]: Completion percentage allowed 57 yards per catch allowed 5.75 17 quarterback pressures.
• 4:13
  [SPEAKER_00]: He's a good blitzer, right?
• 4:14
  [SPEAKER_00]: And the biggest thing is his ability to read and diagnose against the run.
• 4:21
  [SPEAKER_00]: He's smart and coverage too, especially in zone coverage, but reading diagnosing and firing downhill against the run, 51 stops would be his projection.
• 4:30
  [SPEAKER_00]: And these numbers,
• 4:32
  [SPEAKER_00]: Really, our similar to Devon Lloyd, I think that he was making more plays against the run than Devon Lloyd was.
• 4:42
  [SPEAKER_00]: But in coverage is the big difference between these two players just based on this limited sample size.
• 4:48
  [SPEAKER_00]: Devon Lloyd was less consistent in coverage which you can definitely trace back to beyond.
• 4:53
  [SPEAKER_00]: 2025, like he was super inconsistent in coverage before 2025, consistency got better.
• 5:01
  [SPEAKER_00]: But he was still allowing 84% completion percentage in primary coverage and like 10, 11 yards per catch.
• 5:11
  [SPEAKER_00]: You look at what Ventra was doing again, closer to the number was closer to 50 in terms of completion percentage and the Yardspur catch was under six.
• 5:20
  [SPEAKER_00]: I think Ventra was playing more consistent but he also wasn't making the huge place in coverage when he was a starter that are ultimately what Devin Lloyd paid in my opinion.
• 5:31
  [SPEAKER_00]: Everybody always thought he was a really good run defender.
• 5:34
  [SPEAKER_00]: He put that together with also being a huge playmaker.
• 5:41
  [SPEAKER_00]: for interceptions making a ton of stops like he was playing really good football.
• 5:46
  [SPEAKER_00]: There's no doubt about it, but I think ventral Miller can do a lot of those same things and he did show the ability to make plays in coverage.
• 5:53
  [SPEAKER_00]: It just
• 5:55
  [SPEAKER_00]: didn't happen in his starts in terms of the playmaking.
• 5:58
  [SPEAKER_00]: He denied Windows in coverage during his starts.
• 6:00
  [SPEAKER_00]: He put himself in position in those zone coverages to deny the throw, but he wasn't there making huge plays, but he did have an interception later in the season against the jet.
• 6:11
  [SPEAKER_00]: It was really kind of a pop-up horrible throw that was a gaming for Ventral, but he did come down with it.
• 6:16
  [SPEAKER_00]: And then he did make a nice pass break up as well down the stretch against the,
• 6:25
  [SPEAKER_00]: Broncos, or excuse me, yeah, against the the Colts I believe.
• 6:29
  [SPEAKER_00]: Yeah.
• 6:31
  [SPEAKER_00]: So he has the ability to make plays in coverage, his quarterback rating allowed in coverage last year and primary coverage was 14.6.
• 6:40
  [SPEAKER_00]: I mean, he was playing.
• 6:42
  [SPEAKER_00]: He was playing his butt off.
• 6:43
  [SPEAKER_00]: And now he's going to have even more reason to play extremely well.
• 6:50
  [SPEAKER_00]: He's motivated to get a new contract.
• 6:52
  [SPEAKER_00]: And I think if he plays the way he did in 2025, across a 17 game sample size, or you know, he misses a couple games, whatever.
• 7:01
  [SPEAKER_00]: And we can talk about the health part of it.
• 7:02
  [SPEAKER_00]: But I think he's in line to make starting money.
• 7:06
  [SPEAKER_00]: I don't think he's in line to make Devon Lloyd money, which again, you look at Devon Lloyd, he ended up getting 15 million per year,
• 7:20
  [SPEAKER_00]: a year and a half guaranteed.
• 7:21
  [SPEAKER_00]: But 15 million per year, he's top five at the position.
• 7:24
  [SPEAKER_00]: I don't think he'll get that type of money unless he just goes absolutely bonkers, which I don't think is outside of the realm of possibility in the Sansing Campanylight defense with his skill set.
• 7:34
  [SPEAKER_00]: But I think the more likely scenario would be, he gets similar to what we're looking at here.
• 7:42
  [SPEAKER_00]: Sorry.
• 7:44
  [SPEAKER_00]: It's similar numbers to what we've been looking at here today, and then gets paid to be a mid-level starter.
• 7:53
  [SPEAKER_00]: That would be my best guess for what happens within trial Miller this year, just because he doesn't have the years of starting experience that Devon Lloyd had.
• 8:02
  [SPEAKER_00]: He doesn't have the pedigree that Devon Lloyd has.
• 8:06
  [SPEAKER_00]: And he doesn't, you know, Devon Lloyd was a first round pick.
• 8:09
  [SPEAKER_00]: Ventral Miller was a day three pick round four.
• 8:12
  [SPEAKER_00]: And then he also doesn't have like the physical stature that Devon Lloyd has like Lloyd has more of a prototypical size that linebacker.
• 8:23
  [SPEAKER_00]: He's bigger, he's got, you know, longer arms.
• 8:25
  [SPEAKER_00]: He just looks the part more than then Ventral is a little bit squadier, but
• 8:31
  [SPEAKER_00]: I think Ventrell, if he plays the way I'm expecting him to play in the way the numbers when you extrapolate them kind of suggest he can play, I think you're looking at this range of like 10 to 12 million per year for him.
• 8:46
  [SPEAKER_00]: The guys above that are all kind of
• 8:49
  [SPEAKER_00]: higher draft capital guys that are younger or similar age you know ventral even though he's going into year four he is going to be 28 so he's not like you know one of these guys that is going into their second contract at 25 or 26 years old uh but yeah i think ten you know maybe in the nines but i would project more in the tens
• 9:16
  [SPEAKER_00]: 10 to 11, if he plays the way I'm expecting him to play, now will that be with the Jack Wars?
• 9:23
  [SPEAKER_00]: Probably not, and all honesty, you know, they like Branson combs a lot, they just drafted the kid out of Milton and C state, Parker Hughes, they could draft another guy.
• 9:36
  [SPEAKER_00]: I don't think that they're paying another off ball linebacker.
• 9:42
  [SPEAKER_00]: For one, they're currently paying
• 9:45
  [SPEAKER_00]: his contract expires in 2027.
• 9:48
  [SPEAKER_00]: The Jaguar is can save 8.45 million dollars in 2027 by moving on from for a lawyer.
• 10:00
  [SPEAKER_00]: I don't ever want to think about for a not on that defense.
• 10:03
  [SPEAKER_00]: He's done too many good things.
• 10:04
  [SPEAKER_00]: He's too great of a leader, but I don't think they're paying too off while I'm backers.
• 10:09
  [SPEAKER_00]: And they might like to really not be paying any off-ball landbackers based on the history we've seen with Where James Gladstone comes from the Los Angeles Rams now they have paid Bobby Wagner But I think that they thought that that that was like the missing piece on their defense for a championship run Understandably so
• 10:35
  [SPEAKER_00]: uh yeah i think ventral's most likely scenario is a big year in which he puts up a lot of numbers plays pretty darn consistent in this defense the the way he plays you just got to love and appreciate like the fire the grit and really the instincts smarty plays with so
• 10:57
  [SPEAKER_00]: Fun player to watch, I'm excited to see what he can do here in a potentially bigger role.
• 11:03
  [SPEAKER_00]: I think it will be a bigger role, starting role.
• 11:07
  [SPEAKER_00]: And go get paid.
• 11:09
  [SPEAKER_00]: Whether that be by the Jack Wars is somewhere else, I think that Ventrel is in line for that if he plays well.
• 11:14
  [SPEAKER_00]: Now, what the Jack Wars could do, they could extend him this off season if they want to and probably get a deal, right?
• 11:25
  [SPEAKER_00]: That could be a smart way to play it
• 11:29
  [SPEAKER_00]: We really like our linebackers.
• 11:31
  [SPEAKER_00]: We like Jack Kaiser with like Ventral, Branson, Combs, Parker Hughes, FOIA.
• 11:35
  [SPEAKER_00]: We're probably gonna, and I'm not saying this is what they're, I don't know.
• 11:39
  [SPEAKER_00]: But if they are probably looking at moving on from FOIA, who's gonna be 31 this year, after 2026, they could go ahead and say, let's try to lock in Ventral for a couple extra years.
• 11:53
  [SPEAKER_00]: We already have Jack Kaiser waiting in the wings at middle linebacker.
• 11:57
  [SPEAKER_00]: And part of that calculus would be, how do we feel like Jack Kaiser is progressing, right?
• 12:03
  [SPEAKER_00]: Or can Parker Hughes play that spot, or can Branson Colm's play that spot, right?
• 12:10
  [SPEAKER_00]: Venturell could be in the plants.
• 12:12
  [SPEAKER_00]: He also might not be.
• 12:13
  [SPEAKER_00]: It's just really difficult to predict what these Jacksonville Jaguars were due.
• 12:19
  [SPEAKER_00]: We'll do.
• 12:20
  [SPEAKER_00]: I think that's a good thing.
• 12:21
  [SPEAKER_00]: I really do.
• 12:22
  [SPEAKER_00]: Keep everybody on their toes.
• 12:23
  [SPEAKER_00]: It covers the team and around the league.
• 12:25
  [SPEAKER_00]: So, that's kind of my summary.
• 12:27
  [SPEAKER_00]: My thoughts on Ventral Miller and during the season, I think he's going to have a heck of a year for the Jaguars.
• 12:33
  [SPEAKER_00]: You know, last year at this time, a lot of people didn't want Devon Lloyd.
• 12:37
  [SPEAKER_00]: on the field very much, you know, a lot of fans and analysts didn't want to see Devon Lloyd a whole lot.
• 12:43
  [SPEAKER_00]: That wasn't going to be the case, you know, just based on the way he was playing, but he played out of his mind for a lot of the season.
• 12:51
  [SPEAKER_00]: And I think Ventura Miller has the ability to do that as well.
• 12:55
  [SPEAKER_00]: So, excited to see it.
• 12:57
  [SPEAKER_00]: Really appreciate y'all tuning in.
• 12:58
  [SPEAKER_00]: If you enjoy the content, please like and subscribe.
• 13:01
  [SPEAKER_00]: Y'all have a good one.