Latest / The Jacksonville Jaguars Official Podcast Network / Jags A.M. Podcast Ep. 241 | Reviewing the Jaguars' Initial Roster for 2026 Season

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Jags A.M. Podcast Ep. 241 | Reviewing the Jaguars' Initial Roster for 2026 Season · The Jacksonville Jaguars Official Podcast Network

• 0:16
  Speaker 1: Welcome into JAXA and brought to you by Fields Auto Group.
• 0:18
  Speaker 1: I'm Kanani Stephens. Brian Sexton and John Ogier are with
• 0:20
  Speaker 1: me today. We made it through the preseason. Things are official.
• 0:23
  Speaker 1: They cut down the roster yesterday and now the regular
• 0:26
  Speaker 1: season is upon us. Let's go over some of our
• 0:28
  Speaker 1: big things. Brought to you by GEHA, Government Employees Health Association.
• 0:32
  Speaker 1: Big thing number one is the 53. They did the
• 0:34
  Speaker 1: roster cutdowns earlier this year. Normally it's on a Tuesday.
• 0:37
  Speaker 1: They did it on Sunday this year. We're now down
• 0:39
  Speaker 1: to the final 53. We'll figure out practice squad at
• 0:42
  Speaker 1: some point, John, but Not a ton of surprises necessarily,
• 0:45
  Speaker 1: maybe one or two, but I think we kind of
• 0:47
  Speaker 1: knew what the core was going to look like.
• 0:49
  Speaker 2: Yeah, I think the big surprise, the big move, obviously,
• 0:53
  Speaker 2: was trading for Quinn Ears and then releasing Nick Mullins
• 0:58
  Speaker 2: as backup quarterback. To me, Brian, that just showed, look,
• 1:04
  Speaker 2: they liked Nick Mullins. They liked what he brought. But
• 1:07
  Speaker 2: if they can see a spot that they want to
• 1:10
  Speaker 2: upgrade just a little bit, They're going to be aggressive, and.
• 1:12
  Speaker 3: They're going to make moves, and they're not going to
• 1:15
  Speaker 3: be passive.
• 1:16
  Speaker 2: And I think that has, if there has been a thread,
• 1:20
  Speaker 2: aside from winning and improving through this regime, it's been
• 1:23
  Speaker 2: that they're willing to do what it takes, and they're
• 1:27
  Speaker 2: not going to be passive in moments where they have.
• 1:30
  Speaker 3: A chance to be active.
• 1:31
  Speaker 4: And I imagine that they're going to be very active
• 1:33
  Speaker 4: today looking at the waiver wire.
• 1:35
  Speaker 5: 1,100 players hit it last night. And we won't know
• 1:38
  Speaker 5: who or how many claims they put in and never get, right?
• 1:42
  Speaker 5: But they are looking at everyone.
• 1:44
  Speaker 4: Shortly after Tony Buscelli took the job, he made an
• 1:47
  Speaker 4: offhanded comment about there will never be sacred cows. In
• 1:50
  Speaker 4: other words, they will always be looking for opportunities, as
• 1:53
  Speaker 4: John just mentioned, to go and upgrade the roster. Personally,
• 1:56
  Speaker 4: I don't know a lot of places on the roster
• 1:59
  Speaker 4: that you look at right now, John, and say, well,
• 2:01
  Speaker 4: we can't line up and play good football.
• 2:03
  Speaker 5: I think there may be a.
• 2:03
  Speaker 4: Guy here or there, but personally, I think they're at
• 2:07
  Speaker 4: a point where the practice squad has great interest for
• 2:10
  Speaker 4: me because I want to see how many of these
• 2:11
  Speaker 4: guys Come back. Guys they've had here all summer through
• 2:15
  Speaker 4: the offseason they've been developing. Guys they were legitimately excited about,
• 2:18
  Speaker 4: like Jamari Taylor.
• 2:19
  Speaker 5: Absolutely.
• 2:20
  Speaker 1: Let's go to our second big thing, which is insider info.
• 2:22
  Speaker 1: What was cool about our final preseason game here was
• 2:25
  Speaker 1: that we got Liam Cohen on the broadcast. Brian, I
• 2:27
  Speaker 1: wanted to check in with you about it. Such a
• 2:29
  Speaker 1: cool perspective to have the head coach kind of talking
• 2:32
  Speaker 1: to you guys on a headset during the game.
• 2:38
  Speaker 5: Oh, you want me to talk?
• 2:39
  Speaker 1: Yeah. Get a positive play.
• 2:41
  Speaker 5: Daniel's looking right.
• 2:42
  Speaker 3: He's under pressure. Let's go.
• 2:44
  Speaker 5: And Brian Thomas Jr. got him again. Coach, give that
• 2:47
  Speaker 5: man a jersey.
• 2:48
  Speaker 3: He has been everywhere tonight. He's earning it.
• 2:51
  Speaker 5: Yeah, he is.
• 2:52
  Speaker 3: He's earning it.
• 2:54
  Speaker 4: A 10-yard loss.
• 2:55
  Speaker 5: He's doing it. Listen, it's television gold to quote my
• 3:00
  Speaker 5: friend Brent Martineau.
• 3:01
  Speaker 4: Really, it was great stuff because he was willing to
• 3:04
  Speaker 4: both offer commentary and at the same time coach his guys.
• 3:08
  Speaker 5: You hear him at times going, go, go, go. He
• 3:11
  Speaker 5: called the touchdown.
• 3:12
  Speaker 4: I mean, the minute he got to the line of scrimmage,
• 3:16
  Speaker 4: Carter Bradley– and lined everyone up. He goes, we're going
• 3:19
  Speaker 4: to run this, and this will be a touchdown. And
• 3:22
  Speaker 4: by the time Bradley hit his back step and threw
• 3:23
  Speaker 4: the ball to DJ Dallas, he had called it. He said,
• 3:26
  Speaker 4: we're going for two, called the play there. John, I've
• 3:29
  Speaker 4: done this an awful long time, and I have a
• 3:32
  Speaker 4: hard time remembering a broadcast moment that was as much
• 3:35
  Speaker 4: fun as that one, partially because it was new ground
• 3:38
  Speaker 4: for us in Jacksonville. Sean McVay did it last year
• 3:41
  Speaker 4: in LA, but also because Liam is so good at it.
• 3:45
  Speaker 4: He just has this I don't want to say flippant,
• 3:47
  Speaker 4: but he's just got this devil-may-care attitude, like, I'm going
• 3:50
  Speaker 4: to be myself, and that's good stuff.
• 3:53
  Speaker 5: The FCC might not like it, although there's no reason.
• 3:55
  Speaker 3: He did okay.
• 3:56
  Speaker 1: He did okay.
• 3:57
  Speaker 5: But I loved it. It was great stuff.
• 3:59
  Speaker 2: Yeah, it just shows you, if there has been, again,
• 4:02
  Speaker 2: I'm talking about threads today that run through this regime,
• 4:06
  Speaker 2: this has been another one. If people have noticed, The
• 4:10
  Speaker 2: Hunt has had more access since Tony Viselli, James Gladstone,
• 4:14
  Speaker 2: Liam Cohen got here, this franchise with Liam Cohen does
• 4:18
  Speaker 2: not mind opening the door to show you what's going
• 4:22
  Speaker 2: on as long as it doesn't give away state secrets.
• 4:24
  Speaker 2: So not every franchise I've been around and not every
• 4:28
  Speaker 2: franchise I've heard of would do that.
• 4:30
  Speaker 3: So credit to this bunch. It's a lot of fun.
• 4:32
  Speaker 3: There's no harm in it.
• 4:34
  Speaker 2: And again, as Brian said, whenever Liam is on the podium,
• 4:38
  Speaker 2: whenever he is out there, he just can't help but
• 4:42
  Speaker 2: be good because he loves football so much and loves
• 4:46
  Speaker 2: sharing football with people.
• 4:47
  Speaker 5: And, Kai, listen, the fan base already loved him.
• 4:51
  Speaker 4: For 13-4, for the way that he grabbed a hold
• 4:54
  Speaker 4: of edges last year and fought back against the national
• 4:57
  Speaker 4: narrative about Jacksonville and the Jaguars, they already loved him.
• 5:00
  Speaker 4: And that moment, it wasn't just a moment. He was
• 5:03
  Speaker 4: on for the 14-play, 74-yard drive. He was on a
• 5:06
  Speaker 4: long time. All weekend, all I heard from anyone, wherever
• 5:10
  Speaker 4: I went, was that was really fun. They love him,
• 5:13
  Speaker 4: and that gave them another reason to love him.
• 5:16
  Speaker 1: Yeah, absolutely. I think we all enjoyed it, and I'm
• 5:18
  Speaker 1: glad he was able to showcase his personality that we
• 5:20
  Speaker 1: all know so well on the broadcast. So let's go
• 5:23
  Speaker 1: to our final big thing today, which is hurry up
• 5:25
  Speaker 1: and wait. We finally made it through the preseason, but
• 5:27
  Speaker 1: now it's almost two weeks until we're going to see
• 5:30
  Speaker 1: regular season football, John, for the Jaguars. It feels like
• 5:33
  Speaker 1: a long wait at this point, but I'm sure Liam
• 5:35
  Speaker 1: is enjoying the ability to game plan a bit for
• 5:38
  Speaker 1: the Browns.
• 5:39
  Speaker 2: Yeah, it's another one of those changes that Brian and
• 5:42
  Speaker 2: I have experienced in 30 years around this thing. It
• 5:45
  Speaker 2: used to be you cut, I think it was Saturday,
• 5:48
  Speaker 2: And then eight days later, you were playing. If you
• 5:50
  Speaker 2: played on Thursday night, you were cutting four or five
• 5:53
  Speaker 2: days for the season. Now it's 14. I don't know
• 5:56
  Speaker 2: if that's good or bad. I do know that it
• 5:59
  Speaker 2: has added a, for the players and coaches, I'm sure
• 6:02
  Speaker 2: it's nice. You've got, what, 17 of 18 weeks coming up.
• 6:08
  Speaker 2: You're off of a training camp where you're beat up
• 6:11
  Speaker 2: and you're tired. It's okay to have this little break.
• 6:15
  Speaker 2: The kid in me, Brian, I remember when I was
• 6:17
  Speaker 2: a kid and waiting for.
• 6:18
  Speaker 3: Football to start.
• 6:19
  Speaker 2: If I was 12-year-old John Osher waiting for my favorite
• 6:23
  Speaker 2: team to start, this would drive me nuts.
• 6:26
  Speaker 3: But at my age, I kind of like it.
• 6:27
  Speaker 5: So you've matured over the last half century.
• 6:30
  Speaker 3: But I have grown weary, Brian. So I need my rest.
• 6:34
  Speaker 3: I have not matured.
• 6:35
  Speaker 4: Weary is a good word. Because what people can't necessarily
• 6:39
  Speaker 4: see or feel, Kai, is just what a grind August is.
• 6:44
  Speaker 4: It's early mornings and late nights and travel. And so
• 6:49
  Speaker 4: I don't know what the coach's schedule is going to be,
• 6:50
  Speaker 4: but I imagine that they'll have a breather here because
• 6:53
  Speaker 4: there won't be another one until the end of October.
• 6:55
  Speaker 5: I love this. I mean, I am just, I don't
• 6:58
  Speaker 5: know how to describe it.
• 6:59
  Speaker 4: I think this pre-season bye week is tremendous because it
• 7:03
  Speaker 4: gives everybody a chance to to have a little bit
• 7:05
  Speaker 4: of downtime before the insanity of a schedule that no
• 7:09
  Speaker 4: one can necessarily control. Once you hit the gas, it
• 7:12
  Speaker 4: just goes. And I think this is fantastic. I think
• 7:14
  Speaker 4: it's good for the players. You know, John, you had
• 7:16
  Speaker 4: a couple of guys like Brian Thomas Jr. And, um,
• 7:20
  Speaker 4: Jacoby Myers, who were banged up, and those aren't the
• 7:22
  Speaker 4: only two. It gives Cole Van Landen perhaps a little
• 7:25
  Speaker 4: bit more runway to get ready to play on opening
• 7:27
  Speaker 4: day if he's at that point, and I'm not saying
• 7:30
  Speaker 4: he is, but it gives you more opportunity.
• 7:31
  Speaker 5: To evaluate this. This preseason bye is freaking awesome.
• 7:36
  Speaker 1: One more free weekend, one more football-free weekend, guys, and
• 7:38
  Speaker 1: then we're back. But stay with us here on JAGZAM.
• 7:41
  Speaker 1: We're going to go over that 53-man roster and the
• 7:43
  Speaker 1: decisions that were made, and then we'll also talk a
• 7:46
  Speaker 1: little bit about the regular season. Welcome back into Jags.
• 7:57
  Speaker 1: I'm brought to you by Fields Auto Group. We're in
• 7:58
  Speaker 1: the Hyundai studios and we made it through the preseason.
• 8:01
  Speaker 1: So we're going to talk a little bit about the
• 8:03
  Speaker 1: 53 man roster. They cut things down on Sunday. Still
• 8:06
  Speaker 1: working on practice squad right now, but not a ton
• 8:08
  Speaker 1: of surprises. As we mentioned off the top, though, they
• 8:12
  Speaker 1: did finally address that backup quarterback situation. We didn't think
• 8:15
  Speaker 1: they would, but. I guess they kind of were working
• 8:17
  Speaker 1: on it on the side.
• 8:18
  Speaker 4: Well, those are the kind of decisions generally, John, the
• 8:20
  Speaker 4: backup quarterback that you make in the offseason because then
• 8:23
  Speaker 4: they spend all those months working with the other quarterbacks, quarterback, coach,
• 8:27
  Speaker 4: offensive coordinator. They know your methodology. They know your calls.
• 8:30
  Speaker 4: They know the way you do things. You bring Quinn
• 8:32
  Speaker 4: Ewers in here now, and he's got to figure all
• 8:34
  Speaker 4: that out. Now, hopefully, you don't need him anytime soon.
• 8:37
  Speaker 4: But if you needed him on opening day, right, God forbid,
• 8:42
  Speaker 4: you'd be in a little bit of a hole. But
• 8:43
  Speaker 4: they're willing to trade that for the long term, obviously.
• 8:46
  Speaker 3: Yeah, there's also the element that you talked about.
• 8:49
  Speaker 2: Yes, you want to decide it in the offseason. You
• 8:52
  Speaker 2: also have preseason where you figure out what you really are.
• 8:57
  Speaker 2: I remember last year during the training camp period, they
• 9:00
  Speaker 2: figured out, hey, we need to make sure we're a
• 9:03
  Speaker 2: little better at wide receiver than we are right now.
• 9:06
  Speaker 2: We look at it. There's also a case where players
• 9:11
  Speaker 2: are on other rosters. Yours may not have been available.
• 9:14
  Speaker 2: at this price in, what, May. So now all of
• 9:19
  Speaker 2: a sudden there's some dynamics that change at the end
• 9:20
  Speaker 2: of preseason where you go ahead and make a move. Again,
• 9:23
  Speaker 2: I think this move speaks to a couple of moves
• 9:25
  Speaker 2: this weekend of they are not going to stand pat
• 9:29
  Speaker 2: and make decisions because, well, we brought this in last year.
• 9:32
  Speaker 2: We have to stick with this because this is what
• 9:34
  Speaker 2: we told people we were doing. They're willing to try
• 9:37
  Speaker 2: to look at what they are through, I guess, an
• 9:40
  Speaker 2: unfiltered lens. to make sure that they are as good
• 9:43
  Speaker 2: as they can be going into a season.
• 9:45
  Speaker 4: And they had the highest scoring offense in Jaguars history
• 9:47
  Speaker 4: last year. So if they think this is a good move,
• 9:50
  Speaker 4: who is anybody to say it isn't?
• 9:51
  Speaker 1: Let's go through some of the other offensive choices. They
• 9:53
  Speaker 1: ended up going with four running backs, keeping Amir Abdullah,
• 9:56
  Speaker 1: I think, after that preseason game number two kind of
• 9:58
  Speaker 1: solidified things a little bit. And they do have a
• 10:00
  Speaker 1: young running back room. Obviously, he's been around for 12 seasons.
• 10:03
  Speaker 1: He's figured it out, which as a running back we've
• 10:05
  Speaker 1: talked about is very impressive. But I wasn't shocked that
• 10:09
  Speaker 1: they did that, but it was interesting to see that
• 10:11
  Speaker 1: they went that route with four.
• 10:12
  Speaker 5: Well, we heard in New Orleans, you were in that meeting,
• 10:16
  Speaker 5: how much they admired Amir. Amir Abdullah.
• 10:19
  Speaker 4: I was a little surprised that he might be on
• 10:22
  Speaker 4: the roster. And of course, you do have the injury
• 10:23
  Speaker 4: with LaQuinta Allen Jr., though we've been hearing that he
• 10:26
  Speaker 4: should be back. John, I think the storyline is what
• 10:28
  Speaker 4: Kai talked about, is that in a young room, this
• 10:32
  Speaker 4: is a guy, because Chris Rodriguez is only going into
• 10:33
  Speaker 4: his fourth season, and he's never carried the load like
• 10:37
  Speaker 4: that for a team before. So this is a veteran
• 10:40
  Speaker 4: move as much as anything.
• 10:41
  Speaker 2: Yeah, they want An elder statesman in every room. They
• 10:45
  Speaker 2: really feel like that helps. They've got him in most
• 10:46
  Speaker 2: now they have one in the running back room.
• 10:49
  Speaker 3: And look, we've been talking about it all day. The
• 10:54
  Speaker 3: mark of this regime is they.
• 10:56
  Speaker 2: Want guys who can play and they want guys that
• 10:59
  Speaker 2: they trust who are good players. And the way he
• 11:02
  Speaker 2: played in training camp, when they tell the roster, 53 guys, hey,
• 11:06
  Speaker 2: we're going to pick the best guys. And then this
• 11:09
  Speaker 2: guy performs like this and then you let him go.
• 11:12
  Speaker 3: Everybody's walking around going, well, I thought we were the
• 11:14
  Speaker 3: best guy. This guy was good.
• 11:15
  Speaker 2: So I do think they adhere to that more than
• 11:18
  Speaker 2: a lot of teams right now do. This is a
• 11:22
  Speaker 2: little unorthodox, keeping a 12-year running back who hasn't been
• 11:26
  Speaker 2: with you before. It's not the NFL norm, but he's
• 11:31
  Speaker 2: one of the best 53 players, and I think that's
• 11:34
  Speaker 2: what they adhere to more than anything around here.
• 11:35
  Speaker 4: He also brings the culture. When you talk to him,
• 11:39
  Speaker 4: and I did for radio last week, He is a
• 11:42
  Speaker 4: fiery chip on his shoulder, wants to show you that
• 11:47
  Speaker 4: he can play and prepare. He's an interesting young guy.
• 11:50
  Speaker 5: He's not young.
• 11:51
  Speaker 4: He's an interesting guy for the young guys to follow
• 11:54
  Speaker 4: because when you ask him, hey, how have you made
• 11:56
  Speaker 4: it for 12 years? I mean, running backs, three and
• 11:58
  Speaker 4: a half years is their lifespan. And he's got a
• 12:00
  Speaker 4: great answer for that. I think he's the kind of
• 12:02
  Speaker 4: guy you want in your room. And if you're Liam Cohen,
• 12:05
  Speaker 4: you want more guys like that around your team.
• 12:07
  Speaker 3: Yeah, that's what's off the charts. Unusual.
• 12:09
  Speaker 5: You see.
• 12:11
  Speaker 2: veteran safeties, linemen, other players' positions. Running back is a
• 12:16
  Speaker 2: young man's position. And for this kid, I'll call him
• 12:19
  Speaker 2: a kid because he's 30 years younger than me. But
• 12:24
  Speaker 2: for him to do this is uber impressive. Not surprising
• 12:27
  Speaker 2: that he fits into this culture.
• 12:30
  Speaker 1: Elsewhere on the offense, they send Hunter Long off to Arizona,
• 12:34
  Speaker 1: which I don't think he was going to, I think
• 12:35
  Speaker 1: it was going to be tight for him to make
• 12:36
  Speaker 1: the roster either way. It was probably him or Quentin
• 12:38
  Speaker 1: Morris on that fourth spot. So get a pick back
• 12:41
  Speaker 1: from that. And then offensive line, they go a little
• 12:43
  Speaker 1: less than they normally do. I think it was a nine,
• 12:45
  Speaker 1: and then McCary's on IR. But they did end up
• 12:49
  Speaker 1: keeping Vallele, who they traded the pick for, to New York.
• 12:52
  Speaker 1: And I think everybody else is kind of what we expected, probably,
• 12:55
  Speaker 1: out of the younger guys that they kept.
• 12:57
  Speaker 2: Yeah, I think, too, my impression is they feel good
• 13:02
  Speaker 2: en masse about three or four of the young linemen
• 13:06
  Speaker 2: that will be on the practice squad. they may lose one.
• 13:09
  Speaker 2: I don't know who it would be, but the math
• 13:11
  Speaker 2: would suggest maybe you lose one. Well, if you like
• 13:14
  Speaker 2: three or four, you're going to have a group that
• 13:17
  Speaker 2: you don't mind promoting going in. I was a little
• 13:20
  Speaker 2: surprised that Chuma was released. I don't know what the
• 13:24
  Speaker 2: dynamic will be if they want to bring him back
• 13:26
  Speaker 2: to the practice squad.
• 13:27
  Speaker 3: I would think they would as a veteran guy.
• 13:30
  Speaker 2: He's the kind of guy that if he makes it,
• 13:33
  Speaker 2: where the practice squad has changed the dynamics of rosters
• 13:36
  Speaker 2: over the last, what, six to ten years. Now you
• 13:39
  Speaker 2: can potentially bring back that level of veteran, not have
• 13:42
  Speaker 2: to keep him on the practice squad, I mean, not
• 13:43
  Speaker 2: have to keep him on the roster.
• 13:45
  Speaker 3: The risk is losing him.
• 13:46
  Speaker 2: But really, I think Ryan O'Halloran from the TU tweeted out,
• 13:49
  Speaker 2: I think there were only 25 claims last year on
• 13:52
  Speaker 2: this day. It's not as big of a risk to
• 13:56
  Speaker 2: lose a bunch of guys as people think.
• 13:59
  Speaker 3: But you might lose the guy you want. And I
• 14:01
  Speaker 3: think they're worried about Jamari Taylor.
• 14:02
  Speaker 2: They're worried about a couple of guys who clearly can
• 14:05
  Speaker 2: play in the league, but they kept guys that they
• 14:10
  Speaker 2: knew would get claimed if they released them.
• 14:13
  Speaker 4: Just to touch on the offensive line, remember that was
• 14:15
  Speaker 4: a point of, panic's a strong word, but a point of, uh-oh,
• 14:19
  Speaker 4: you can't. When they had 16 guys they brought to camp,
• 14:21
  Speaker 4: and all of a sudden they were down to nine,
• 14:23
  Speaker 4: and they were having trouble practicing. And I think the
• 14:25
  Speaker 4: group that they've got right now has such versatility. You've
• 14:29
  Speaker 4: got guys who can play left and right, inside and out.
• 14:31
  Speaker 4: You've got a couple of different guys who can snap
• 14:33
  Speaker 4: the ball. I think they've done a really good job.
• 14:36
  Speaker 4: I think this is a very good offensive line. I
• 14:38
  Speaker 4: don't think anyone's going to say that it's a top
• 14:40
  Speaker 4: five offensive line. But you can see the potential for
• 14:42
  Speaker 4: them to climb towards the top ten and be one
• 14:45
  Speaker 4: of those offensive lines that people go, they really, they
• 14:48
  Speaker 4: play good in Jacksonville.
• 14:49
  Speaker 3: I don't know if they have any all pro. Maybe
• 14:52
  Speaker 3: they do.
• 14:53
  Speaker 2: But I do feel like When they get injured, you're
• 14:59
  Speaker 2: not going to see a huge drop-off on this line.
• 15:01
  Speaker 2: They're going to be a consistent line that can withstand
• 15:03
  Speaker 2: the course of the season. And that's really just as
• 15:07
  Speaker 2: important as being the, quote, best offensive line in the league.
• 15:11
  Speaker 2: If you can make it through the season playing at
• 15:13
  Speaker 2: your level, that's really important.
• 15:14
  Speaker 4: I do think it's exciting that they have a candidate
• 15:16
  Speaker 4: that could someday be All-Pro, and that's Emmanuel Pregnant. The
• 15:19
  Speaker 4: people in this building are just absolutely excited about where
• 15:23
  Speaker 4: he's got to go.
• 15:23
  Speaker 5: Long way to go.
• 15:24
  Speaker 4: Hasn't even made his first NFL start. But when you
• 15:26
  Speaker 4: talk about potential, he's got the kind of skill set
• 15:29
  Speaker 4: and power that could make him one of the league's best.
• 15:32
  Speaker 1: Flip over to the defensive side. Well, we'll skip over
• 15:35
  Speaker 1: the specialists because we all know those are very talented individuals,
• 15:38
  Speaker 1: and those are pretty much gimmies. The defensive backs, they
• 15:42
  Speaker 1: ended up with 10, I think. And that was... Oh, yeah.
• 15:45
  Speaker 3: Sorry.
• 15:46
  Speaker 1: So I think a lot of names we were familiar with.
• 15:48
  Speaker 1: And then Jabbar Muhammad may be the surprise there, keeping
• 15:51
  Speaker 1: Christian Braswell over him. But I felt like he maybe
• 15:54
  Speaker 1: kind of tapered off towards the end of training camp.
• 15:56
  Speaker 1: I know we talked a ton about what he was
• 15:58
  Speaker 1: doing early in training camp, but kind of tapered off
• 15:59
  Speaker 1: at the end.
• 16:00
  Speaker 2: He's also another guy that you make calculated risks at
• 16:04
  Speaker 2: this point. This is not the old days where when
• 16:07
  Speaker 2: guys walk out of the building after they've been.
• 16:09
  Speaker 3: Cut, they're holding.
• 16:11
  Speaker 2: all their belongings and going home and starting to work
• 16:14
  Speaker 2: at Home Depot. No offense to Home Depot. 16 or
• 16:19
  Speaker 2: 14 of these guys will be back. Jabbar Muhammad feels
• 16:22
  Speaker 2: like a safe risk. I think he can play in
• 16:23
  Speaker 2: this league. My guess is 32 teams in the NFL.
• 16:29
  Speaker 2: There's probably 25 of them with Jabbar Muhammad on their
• 16:32
  Speaker 2: practice squad. A young guy who they believe in, who
• 16:36
  Speaker 2: can develop. I don't know that teams are going to
• 16:38
  Speaker 2: come after Jabari Muhammad. Oh, we have to have him
• 16:40
  Speaker 2: on our active roster? And that's not an insult to him.
• 16:44
  Speaker 2: It's just I don't know if he's going to draw
• 16:45
  Speaker 2: that kind of attention. I feel like you can get
• 16:47
  Speaker 2: him back. It wouldn't surprise me at all if Jabari
• 16:50
  Speaker 2: Muhammad is active for six games for this team.
• 16:52
  Speaker 3: There's a bunch of guys in the practice squad like that.
• 16:54
  Speaker 4: I know James Gladstone made a comment on the practice
• 16:57
  Speaker 4: field in New Orleans that he was a guy who
• 17:00
  Speaker 4: practiced so well, a guy they were really happy with.
• 17:03
  Speaker 4: And then he made some plays in the preseason, but
• 17:05
  Speaker 4: he kind of tailed off, as you mentioned. So he's
• 17:08
  Speaker 4: a guy you should be able to get back on
• 17:09
  Speaker 4: the practice squad. It's also worth noting they kept both
• 17:12
  Speaker 4: of those third-round safeties. Caleb Bransaw is a better special
• 17:15
  Speaker 4: teams player. He's a starting gunner right now than Jalen Husky.
• 17:18
  Speaker 4: But Husky showed better ball skills. But those are two
• 17:21
  Speaker 4: third-round picks. Third-round picks are guys that you expect to
• 17:25
  Speaker 4: grow into starters.
• 17:27
  Speaker 5: Clearly, neither one of them is ready for that role yet.
• 17:29
  Speaker 5: But both have a spot that they can contribute.
• 17:32
  Speaker 4: And so when the Jaguars did the roster calculus, they
• 17:34
  Speaker 4: had two young guys at a position that's becoming increasingly
• 17:37
  Speaker 4: important in the NFL these days.
• 17:39
  Speaker 1: Linebacker was the group where we saw they went five.
• 17:42
  Speaker 1: They were not afraid to part with some of their
• 17:44
  Speaker 1: own picks, right?
• 17:45
  Speaker 3: Yeah, they did really.
• 17:46
  Speaker 2: I mean, Jelani Tavi. I've been working on his name
• 17:52
  Speaker 2: all morning. I still couldn't get it, so that's on me.
• 17:56
  Speaker 2: I thought that was very significant. here's the guy they
• 17:59
  Speaker 2: brought in not a guy that most fans would say
• 18:02
  Speaker 2: oh he's on the roster you let kaiser go you
• 18:04
  Speaker 2: let mcleod go i'm assuming one of those guys will
• 18:07
  Speaker 2: be back as development but again i think the calculated
• 18:10
  Speaker 2: risk is are people going to come after those guys
• 18:12
  Speaker 2: to pick them up uh but it does show you
• 18:15
  Speaker 2: hey you know the teams get criticized a little bit
• 18:18
  Speaker 2: for letting draft picks from the previous offseason go i
• 18:22
  Speaker 2: don't know that criticism is warranted but that's the kind
• 18:25
  Speaker 2: of thing that happens They don't care about that.
• 18:26
  Speaker 3: They want to keep the best guys.
• 18:28
  Speaker 2: And they know sometimes, hey, this guy wasn't as good
• 18:30
  Speaker 2: as this because we drafted him. Doesn't mean we're going
• 18:34
  Speaker 2: to commit to something that we don't have.
• 18:35
  Speaker 4: Well, they also let you see Abdullah go, who was
• 18:37
  Speaker 4: one of the best special teams players.
• 18:39
  Speaker 5: But he couldn't contribute at that Sam.
• 18:41
  Speaker 1: Right.
• 18:41
  Speaker 4: So he didn't have a spot on the roster. They
• 18:43
  Speaker 4: just didn't get to see enough from Sean McLeod. I'm
• 18:46
  Speaker 4: Jalen McLeod.
• 18:46
  Speaker 5: Sorry, Sean McLeod.
• 18:49
  Speaker 4: They hoped he could play more than one position because
• 18:51
  Speaker 4: that's sort of the hallmark. You've got Branson Combs, who's
• 18:53
  Speaker 4: really your weak side linebacker, but you've got Vantrell who
• 18:56
  Speaker 4: can play two spots. Tavi, they think, can play two spots.
• 18:59
  Speaker 5: B.J.
• 19:00
  Speaker 4: Green, they think, can play strong side in a pinch
• 19:02
  Speaker 4: behind Dennis Gardak.
• 19:04
  Speaker 5: They've got some guys.
• 19:05
  Speaker 4: That was a spot on the roster where they knew
• 19:07
  Speaker 4: they had to be willing to constrict a little bit
• 19:11
  Speaker 4: to make room for two safeties, four tight ends, the
• 19:14
  Speaker 4: extra running back.
• 19:16
  Speaker 5: You ask how they get it done? They're going to
• 19:19
  Speaker 5: get done with five linebackers on the roster.
• 19:21
  Speaker 3: Yeah, and don't let practice squad stigma fool you here.
• 19:25
  Speaker 2: Quentin Moore started last season on the practice squad, and
• 19:28
  Speaker 2: they re-signed him to a contract this past offseason.
• 19:32
  Speaker 3: Getting released right now and being on.
• 19:34
  Speaker 2: The practice squad, again, everybody talks about the 53, the 53.
• 19:39
  Speaker 2: It's really a 69-player roster these days because you have
• 19:45
  Speaker 2: to count the practice squad, even though you're risking guys'
• 19:48
  Speaker 2: You have to build your seasonal game plan around some
• 19:51
  Speaker 2: practice squad guys.
• 19:53
  Speaker 1: And allow me to apologize for us getting this far
• 19:54
  Speaker 1: into the show without me mentioning Brian Thomas Jr., the
• 19:56
  Speaker 1: defensive end, who made quite a name for himself in
• 19:59
  Speaker 1: the third preseason game. I personally think he was already
• 20:02
  Speaker 1: on this roster, but that was just the cherry on
• 20:04
  Speaker 1: the sundae with his performance.
• 20:06
  Speaker 4: I think he was, too, from conversations with people in
• 20:09
  Speaker 4: the building, John.
• 20:09
  Speaker 5: I mean, he just.
• 20:11
  Speaker 4: Besides having a skill set that every team covets, the
• 20:15
  Speaker 4: ability to rush the passer, he played hard against the run.
• 20:18
  Speaker 5: He's got an NFL pedigree in his father. He grew
• 20:20
  Speaker 5: up around the game because his.
• 20:21
  Speaker 4: Dad played for the New York Jets and was a
• 20:23
  Speaker 4: very good pass rusher.
• 20:24
  Speaker 5: He's also... a grade A character guy. I mean, just
• 20:29
  Speaker 5: if you've talked to him, you know what I'm talking about.
• 20:32
  Speaker 1: Yes, sir.
• 20:33
  Speaker 5: Absolutely.
• 20:33
  Speaker 4: Does the job in early, stays late.
• 20:36
  Speaker 5: He's everything this culture wants.
• 20:37
  Speaker 4: So you can't let a young developmental guy like that
• 20:41
  Speaker 4: get too far away from you. That's a guy who
• 20:43
  Speaker 4: would not have made it to the practice squad. He
• 20:45
  Speaker 4: would have been claimed on waivers by five different teams
• 20:47
  Speaker 4: because what he showed in the preseason.
• 20:49
  Speaker 2: Yeah, I forget exactly what Liam's quote was in the
• 20:53
  Speaker 2: press or after the game.
• 20:54
  Speaker 3: They talked about Brian Thomas Jr.
• 20:55
  Speaker 2: A little bit, and then at the end he said,
• 20:58
  Speaker 2: you know, when you can rush the passer, when you
• 21:01
  Speaker 2: have that skill set, it's basically saying, look, you're going
• 21:05
  Speaker 2: to be able to find employment if you can get
• 21:08
  Speaker 2: to the quarterback. So significant, though, they kept six at
• 21:13
  Speaker 2: that spot. They really leaned in and committed in the
• 21:17
  Speaker 2: last couple years to we are going to spend some
• 21:21
  Speaker 2: significant late-round free agent equity. We're going to give these
• 21:24
  Speaker 2: kids a chance.
• 21:26
  Speaker 3: B.J.
• 21:26
  Speaker 2: Green, Danny Strigow, Zach Durfee was put on IR, but
• 21:31
  Speaker 2: he's still around, obviously. You're starting to list guys, no
• 21:35
  Speaker 2: free agent signings, meaning no outside noise there. They're trying
• 21:39
  Speaker 2: to develop guys, and I think there's still an approach.
• 21:41
  Speaker 2: There's five behind Trayvon and Josh. Let's see over the
• 21:45
  Speaker 2: next year or so if we can get one or
• 21:47
  Speaker 2: two of these guys to really be that third guy.
• 21:51
  Speaker 1: Not too bad for an undrafted guy. Nice little addition.
• 21:54
  Speaker 4: You mentioned three, right? Strigow Green and now Thomas Jr.,
• 21:58
  Speaker 4: who were all undrafted guys. And they weren't drafted because
• 22:01
  Speaker 4: there was something. One was too short. One didn't have
• 22:04
  Speaker 4: enough explosion in the three-cone drill or whatever. But all
• 22:07
  Speaker 4: of them come down here with Anthony Campanile in his
• 22:09
  Speaker 4: scheme and earn a chance to compete.
• 22:12
  Speaker 1: Love to see it.
• 22:12
  Speaker 5: Yeah, it's fun stuff.
• 22:13
  Speaker 1: Stay with us here on JAGZAM. We're going to answer
• 22:15
  Speaker 1: some of the fan questions after the break. Sudduth is
• 22:22
  Speaker 1: Florida's most trusted and dependable moving company. Sudduth proud to
• 22:25
  Speaker 1: be the official moving company of the Jacksonville Jaguars. To
• 22:27
  Speaker 1: get a guaranteed quote, visit sudduth.com slash Jacksonville.
• 22:32
  Speaker 5: This broadcast is ozone friendly. The Ozone.
• 22:39
  Speaker 1: Welcome back in. We got some ozone questions. I'm sure
• 22:40
  Speaker 1: you're going to get a bunch more today, John, now
• 22:42
  Speaker 1: that the rosters have come out. But let's start out
• 22:44
  Speaker 1: with HD from Jax, who wants to know about undrafted
• 22:47
  Speaker 1: free agent contracts. So from a contract perspective, how does
• 22:51
  Speaker 1: it work with the undrafted free agents and making the roster?
• 22:54
  Speaker 1: Players like defensive ends DJ Green and Danny Strigow make
• 22:57
  Speaker 1: it to the active roster. Do they negotiate a brand
• 22:59
  Speaker 1: new contract on the spot?
• 23:00
  Speaker 2: Yeah, there's always some subtleties to this. Generally speaking, UDFAs
• 23:06
  Speaker 2: sign a minimum three-year contract.
• 23:11
  Speaker 3: Right after the draft.
• 23:12
  Speaker 2: And the signing bonus of that can vary a little
• 23:16
  Speaker 2: bit based on how much of a priority free agent
• 23:19
  Speaker 2: the guy is. So then once they make the team,
• 23:23
  Speaker 2: then they play for two years.
• 23:26
  Speaker 3: Under whatever contract they signed. It's usually the league minimum.
• 23:31
  Speaker 2: I'm sure there are cases that are exceptions to that
• 23:34
  Speaker 2: where somebody signs something, they have some clause.
• 23:36
  Speaker 3: Generally speaking, that's it.
• 23:38
  Speaker 2: And then after two years, they sign three-year deals because
• 23:41
  Speaker 2: draft picks sign four. Free agents sign three-year deals, and
• 23:45
  Speaker 2: after their second year, they can renegotiate. But they're on
• 23:48
  Speaker 2: that deal. Whatever they signed, they're on it for the
• 23:50
  Speaker 2: first two years.
• 23:51
  Speaker 4: Rookies that sign drafted contracts can't negotiate until after their
• 23:55
  Speaker 4: third year. So it kind of works out that way.
• 23:57
  Speaker 4: And John's right. The bonus money is where they grab
• 24:00
  Speaker 4: a guy. It's the league minimum 99% of the time.
• 24:02
  Speaker 4: But if you really like somebody, you go out and
• 24:05
  Speaker 4: compete against the other teams with the bonus.
• 24:07
  Speaker 1: Because when you're an undrafted free agent, you obviously have
• 24:09
  Speaker 1: the option to pick which club you want to go with.
• 24:11
  Speaker 1: unlike being drafted where you just go where you're picked.
• 24:14
  Speaker 1: So part of it is going to be that bonus money,
• 24:16
  Speaker 1: but also you're going to get an opportunity to actually play,
• 24:18
  Speaker 1: and I think that's what Jacksonville kind of gives, at
• 24:20
  Speaker 1: least we've shown the last two years, the undrafted guys
• 24:23
  Speaker 1: that are getting a shot to actually make a roster.
• 24:25
  Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean, that's something that I'm sure Liam and
• 24:28
  Speaker 2: Tony believed in it as well, but James brought it
• 24:31
  Speaker 2: from the Rams as a priority.
• 24:35
  Speaker 3: You have to commit to it. If you want guys
• 24:39
  Speaker 3: to sign with.
• 24:40
  Speaker 2: You, in free agency and it's important to you, then
• 24:43
  Speaker 2: you have to give them that opportunity. Clearly this franchise
• 24:48
  Speaker 2: should have no problem with agents believing that their undrafted
• 24:52
  Speaker 2: free agents will get a chance.
• 24:54
  Speaker 1: All right, and another question we have is Sean from
• 24:56
  Speaker 1: Oakleaf who says, or wants to know, how many of
• 24:59
  Speaker 1: Sunday's non-veteran roster cuts do you see, if any, being
• 25:02
  Speaker 1: picked up by another team to their 53-man roster before
• 25:07
  Speaker 1: they can be signed to the practice squad?
• 25:09
  Speaker 3: Yeah, see, this is also, I mean, I would guess
• 25:12
  Speaker 3: one or two. Oh, it's not very many. You talk
• 25:15
  Speaker 3: to how good this roster is.
• 25:17
  Speaker 2: Every team's got their guys they're developing. I think there's
• 25:22
  Speaker 2: a bunch of teams that would love to have guys
• 25:24
  Speaker 2: on this practice squad on their own practice squad to develop.
• 25:27
  Speaker 2: From a practice squad player's perspective, most guys don't go
• 25:32
  Speaker 2: and sign with somebody else's practice squad because they're free agents.
• 25:36
  Speaker 3: They can go wherever they want, but.
• 25:42
  Speaker 2: It's not as common as people think for there to
• 25:45
  Speaker 2: be a run on guys that teams release because You
• 25:49
  Speaker 2: spend six months with your guys.
• 25:51
  Speaker 5: That's it.
• 25:52
  Speaker 3: And you've developed.
• 25:53
  Speaker 2: And if you're the Jaguars, for example, and you want
• 25:56
  Speaker 2: to bring Jamari Taylor back, which I'm sure they do, well,
• 25:58
  Speaker 2: they're going to like Jamari Taylor because they've seen him.
• 26:00
  Speaker 2: He fits their scheme more than a similar guy who's
• 26:04
  Speaker 2: playing for the Raiders. So that's why you don't see
• 26:07
  Speaker 2: as much of it as we talk about during the
• 26:10
  Speaker 2: preseason training camp.
• 26:11
  Speaker 4: And Jamari's the kind of guy who's going to get
• 26:13
  Speaker 4: some interest from other teams because they know what he
• 26:15
  Speaker 4: did at Virginia and they saw what he did in
• 26:17
  Speaker 4: the preseason here. The question is for Jamari to answer.
• 26:21
  Speaker 4: Do you want to go back to Jacksonville? Do you
• 26:22
  Speaker 4: feel like there's an opportunity there? Or do you want
• 26:25
  Speaker 4: to go closer to home, right? I mean, do you
• 26:26
  Speaker 4: want to go back and play in North Carolina where
• 26:29
  Speaker 4: he's from? Or do you want to go play in
• 26:30
  Speaker 4: Virginia where he played? Do you want to play for
• 26:32
  Speaker 4: the Commanders?
• 26:33
  Speaker 5: That kind of thing.
• 26:34
  Speaker 4: Guys have to make personal choices based on what they
• 26:36
  Speaker 4: like or what they think works best for them.
• 26:38
  Speaker 1: Yeah, I agree with you. I think it'll be probably
• 26:40
  Speaker 1: one or two people. And I think a lot of
• 26:41
  Speaker 1: it can be based on position where you're talking about
• 26:42
  Speaker 1: running back or pass rusher where you can kind of
• 26:44
  Speaker 1: just pop them in like a little bit more than
• 26:46
  Speaker 1: someone that needs to learn your scheme fully.
• 26:49
  Speaker 2: And you can see somebody like, you know, Yassir Abdullah,
• 26:52
  Speaker 2: Jalen McLeod, guys who were drafted very recently, teams are
• 26:58
  Speaker 2: going to look at and say, well, I like that
• 26:59
  Speaker 2: guy during the draft. I like him as the 53rd
• 27:03
  Speaker 2: guy on my roster if you're trying to upgrade a
• 27:05
  Speaker 2: little bit.
• 27:06
  Speaker 3: So We'll see. I would think somebody like that would
• 27:09
  Speaker 3: get interest.
• 27:10
  Speaker 4: Abdul is an answer that a lot of people wouldn't
• 27:12
  Speaker 4: consider because his special teams ability is significant. I mean,
• 27:16
  Speaker 4: he is a really good special teams player. But the
• 27:18
  Speaker 4: math just didn't work here. The Jaguars special teams guy,
• 27:21
  Speaker 4: the one guy outside of the specialists, is going to
• 27:24
  Speaker 4: be around lane because they.
• 27:26
  Speaker 5: Think he's elite at that. So there wasn't a spot.
• 27:28
  Speaker 4: Abdul is one of those guys that you could see
• 27:30
  Speaker 4: get picked up by a team that doesn't have an
• 27:33
  Speaker 4: ace on special teams and thinks he might be that guy.
• 27:35
  Speaker 3: But there will be guys.
• 27:37
  Speaker 2: Who got cut, whether they're on this practice squad or
• 27:40
  Speaker 2: out there, that will play.
• 27:42
  Speaker 3: In the league this year.
• 27:44
  Speaker 2: It may not be tomorrow, but in September you'll see
• 27:47
  Speaker 2: a guy like– I'd be stunned if Adoga doesn't play
• 27:49
  Speaker 2: in the league anymore.
• 27:50
  Speaker 1: Yeah, absolutely. But I think with Brian Thomas Jr. getting
• 27:55
  Speaker 1: his spot on the defense and then also Zach Durfee
• 27:59
  Speaker 1: is actually going to be on the IR to return–
• 28:01
  Speaker 1: I think if either of them had gone, I think
• 28:03
  Speaker 1: they would have been very quickly grabbed. But we'll have
• 28:05
  Speaker 1: more on, I think, practice squad later today. And in
• 28:08
  Speaker 1: the coming week, we'll have an idea of what that's
• 28:10
  Speaker 1: going to look like. But we've got one more break.
• 28:12
  Speaker 1: We'll be back, and we'll tell you about the regular season.
• 28:29
  Speaker 1: Welcome back into Jags AM. We're getting ready for the
• 28:31
  Speaker 1: regular season, finally. But there is a little bit of
• 28:35
  Speaker 1: a break. We talked about it. So there's going to
• 28:36
  Speaker 1: be this kind of bi-week of sorts, and then they'll
• 28:38
  Speaker 1: get back into it on Labor Day. It's like the
• 28:41
  Speaker 1: first get-back-into-it game. But as we look ahead a little bit,
• 28:45
  Speaker 1: we do know Deshaun Watson's going to be the starting
• 28:47
  Speaker 1: quarterback for the Browns now. That's official.
• 28:49
  Speaker 4: They've never beaten him when he started again. He didn't
• 28:52
  Speaker 4: start in 2017 in Houston.
• 28:53
  Speaker 1: There's always a time.
• 28:54
  Speaker 5: He came in at halftime, and the game was already well-decided.
• 28:57
  Speaker 5: They haven't beaten this guy.
• 28:59
  Speaker 1: Ever.
• 28:59
  Speaker 5: And I get it.
• 29:00
  Speaker 4: He had the Achilles and he's not the same guy,
• 29:02
  Speaker 4: but he's been a bugaboo for them.
• 29:05
  Speaker 1: Now's the time.
• 29:05
  Speaker 3: Yeah, it's time to go.
• 29:07
  Speaker 2: But I feel from watching this team, I think we
• 29:10
  Speaker 2: all feel the same, that they had a great final
• 29:13
  Speaker 2: couple of weeks.
• 29:14
  Speaker 5: You bet.
• 29:14
  Speaker 2: They're a better roster than they were last year. So
• 29:19
  Speaker 2: they're pretty healthy. I think they're ready to go and
• 29:23
  Speaker 2: we'll talk about it later.
• 29:24
  Speaker 3: Absolutely. All right.
• 29:25
  Speaker 1: Enjoy your one last weekend free of NFL football, Jaguars football.
• 29:30
  Speaker 1: And we'll be back next week to get you ready
• 29:32
  Speaker 1: for week one.