Austen Lane is an old-school kind of football player.
"My first goal is I want to hurt the quarterback. I don't want to just hit somebody, I want to hurt them. I want to cause pain," Lane said after he was selected by the Jaguars in the fifth round with the 153rd overall selection of the draft.
The quarterback must do down and the quarterback must go down hard. It's old-school stuff in a new-school league.
Lane made it four defensive linemen in a row for the Jaguars. A team that was an embarrassing last in the league in sacks in 2009 obviously put a very sharp focus on improving their pass-rush in this draft, and that begs the obvious question: Were the four defensive linemen the Jaguars have drafted the best players available when they were picked, or were they the best defensive linemen available?
"Good question," Director of Player Personnel Terry McDonough said. "All these guys were the top-rated players when they were picked."
Expect the Jaguars' pass-rush to be much-improved in 2010. Peyton Manning, Matt Schaub and whoever the quarterback is in Tennessee, beware, the Jags are coming after you.
Lane rose to prominence following a strong performance at the Senior Bowl, where he picked up a fumble and scored in the game itself.
"They say I have a great motor and I should be competing for playing time," Lane said. "Off the field, I'm laid back, won't cause any problems. Once I cross that white stripe, something snaps in my head."
So the Jaguars have that going for them, which is nice.
