Jaguars lack deep threat

By Krupka  |   Tuesday, May 23, 2006  |  Comments( 2 )

Jacksonville Jaguars
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When wide receiver Jimmy Smith decided it was time to hang up the pads and retire on May 11, he left the Jacksonville Jaguars in quite a predicament. With Smith's departure the team no longer has a deep threat in the passing game.

Barring an unforeseen addition after the June 1 roster cuts, the core group of receivers will be Reggie Williams, Matt Jones and Ernest Wilford. That trio will be auditioning for Smith's former position as the team's No. 1 receiver.

Unfortunately for quarterback Byron Leftwich and offensive coordinator Carl Smith, none of the aforementioned members of the young trio, or any receivers currently on the roster are a threat to stretch the field vertically.

It is fairly important to have a player with the ability to beat opposing teams deep for a number of reasons. First and foremost, it allows an offense to put points up on the board quickly. Secondly, it stretches defenses out more, allowing for the underneath passing game to flourish. And last but not least, by stretching the defense out, more running lanes open up, allowing for a balanced offensive attack.

While it's unfortunate that the receiving corps is "vertically challenged," they do other facets of the game well. It will be Carl Smith's job to design an offense to utilize their strengths. Looking at the triumvirate, there is hope this could be done.
Reggie Williams, the likely successor to the retired Smith, has great height (6-4), but lacks speed. He has had trouble creating separation off the line of scrimmage, and has had injury concerns in his young career. An injury suffered last season cost him his starting job that he hopes to reclaim this summer. The team invested their first-round pick in 2004 on him, so expect Williams to not only get a chance to earn back the starting job, but expect him to win it. He seems to be a perfect red zone target. If he can learn to use his size better to create separation, the fade route by the end zone could be disastrous to opposing defenses.

Matt Jones, the Jaguars first-round pick in 2005, is another tall target. Standing 6-6, the former Arkansas Razorbacks quarterback and receiver was converted to a full time receiver after being drafted. As a rookie last year he showed some promise, flashing the sub 4.4 speed, which frankly, is incredible for such a big target. Still, that doesn't mean he's a great deep threat, as evidenced by having just one reception of over 40 yards last season. However, he does have good hands and always grinds out for the extra yard after catch. He is also an aggressive downfield blocker, which is somewhat of a lost art for receivers these days. Jones has the build to be a great No. 2 receiver.

Ernest Wilford is much like Williams. He is tall (6-4), lacks speed, has long arms and is a very capable receiver in the short passing game. When Williams succumbed to injury, he stepped into the starting role and had a fine season. In eight starts in the 2005 regular season he played well, catching 25 passes for 381 yards and four touchdowns. He finished the season with 681 yards and seven touchdowns. Wilford would be an ideal No. 3 receiver for the Jags out of the slot. He could easily push Jones for the second receiver position, though, which should be an interesting competition.

With no apparent deep threat, the Jaguars look to build their passing offense around tall receivers. Will the offense explode or crumble without a vertical attack? Only time will tell.

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Eric Krupka can be reached at ekrupka@realfootball365.com
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