Join jaguars.com senior editor Vic Ketchman as he tackles the fans' tough questions.
Michael from London, UK
The offseason aggressiveness of the Jaguars gives me the sense that they are placing all their chips on this year. Have you heard of talks of sending Matt Jones and next year's first round pick to Philadelphia for Lito Sheppard?
Vic: No, I haven’t. I’ll keep my ear to the ground. If your information is correct, it sounds as though the Eagles want a tall red-zone receiver.
Nick from Palm Coast, FL
Are you going to answer any questions about the golf tournament format?
Vic: It’ll be “captain’s choice,” as it has been in the past and we’ll play in foursomes. I encourage those who wish to play in the “Ask Vic” golf tournament not to wait to register. We’re starting to fill up.
Keith from Jacksonville
Will there be an Oklahoma drill on the first Monday of training camp again this year?
Vic: Jack Del Rio hasn’t announced anything. Prior to the start of training camp, I’ll ask him what his plans are. I’m assuming he’ll do the Oklahoma in the first full-pads practice of camp, which would be on Monday, July 28.
Mike from Quakertown, PA
How important do you think Maurice Jones-Drew is to the Jacksonville offense?
Vic: In my opinion, he’s a player whose importance is much greater than his stats would indicate, and that’s because Jones-Drew is a big-play guy. He’s the guy to whom this team turns when it needs somebody to make a big play. He made the biggest play of last season, in my opinion, which was the kickoff return following the Steelers’ opening-drive touchdown march in the playoff game. He changed the whole momentum of that game. What if the Jaguars had gone three-and-out and had to punt from deep in their own territory? He’s the kind of player who has shown a penchant for doing big things at big times. Forget about the stats with this guy. The stats don’t even come close to describing what he means to the Jaguars. He is, without a doubt, the best back I’ve ever covered who hasn’t rushed for a thousand yards in a season.
Jason from Jacksonville
So when you say negotiate, does that mean a team is going to have to say play now for this amount or sit out until next season and try to find a team?
Vic: No, it means the owners need to negotiate with the union on a strategy that would keep rookie compensation in line with the compensation being paid to accomplished veterans. The players union showed a willingness to do that when it originally agreed to a rookie salary pool through the salary cap years. It’s not the union’s fault the rookie-pool concept has been abused. It’s the teams that started adding dummy years to the contracts of high draft picks, so the teams could hide money on their caps. The concept is pure. It was intended to limit the amount of money paid to rookies and the union agreed to it. The application of the rookie-pool plan is the problem. Teams have violated the spirit of it.
Andrew from Jacksonville
Derek Landri referred to himself as an “exotic” type of defensive tackle. What does he mean?
Vic: He’s probably referring to the fact that he’s not a traditionally big, mauling, wide-body type of tackle who digs his feet into the ground and holds the point. Landri, in fact, is the exact opposite. He does what he does with quickness and tenacity. He doesn’t have the body type to throw people around. He’s got to get into the gaps and penetrate. His game is disruption.
Derrick from Jacksonville
Bigger impact on defense next season for the Jags, Justin Durant or Reggie Nelson?
Vic: Based on what I saw in OTAs, it would appear Nelson is going to be a featured player in Gregg Williams’ defense. Durant certainly has the skills to be an impact player, but Nelson has already established himself as a starter and would seem to be destined for a higher plane of performance this season. Based on what I saw in OTAs, he could have a very big year.
Rufus from Jacksonville
You mean you expect us to believe it when you say people use the Internet fraudulently?
Vic: No, my mistake. The Internet doesn’t need oversight. People who get some kind of twisted kick out of posing as someone they aren’t and use the Internet to advance lies and misinformation offer a necessary kind of checks and balances against the manipulative credible media. Rules and regulations aren’t any fun.
Stephen from Jacksonville
If I remember right, about 10 years ago teams used to have scrimmages against each other during the summer. Why don't they do that any more?
Vic: You’re talking about a day of combined practices and, frankly, I never thought they were worth the travel hassles they required. Hey, four preseason games are enough in the way of “combined practices” to get ready for the regular season.