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OTAs 2018: Brown progressing nicely

Jacksonville Jaguars linebacker Blair Brown (53) heads to the field before an NFL football practice Friday, May 25, 2018, in Jacksonville, Fla. (AP Photo/John Raoux)
Jacksonville Jaguars linebacker Blair Brown (53) heads to the field before an NFL football practice Friday, May 25, 2018, in Jacksonville, Fla. (AP Photo/John Raoux)

JACKSONVILLE – His process is just that: a process.

And while he won't call his task easy, Brown – a second-year linebacker and the most unknown entity on one of the league's best defenses – will say this:

He's progressing, and that progress is happening quickly.

"Today, it felt really normal – I felt great today; I just have to keep on building off what I did today," Brown said Friday as Jaguars 2018 Organized Team Activities continued at the Dream Finders Homes Practice Fields.

That's Brown's task and his process this month: Continue learning a new position, and continue preparing for his likely task come this fall – i.e., taking over as the strong-side linebacker in a defense expected to again be one of the NFL's best.

"I feel it coming along for sure," Brown said.

That's good news for the Jaguars, who need the second-year veteran to move into the strong-side position vacated when Myles Jack moved to middle linebacker this offseason.

"I think the biggest thing is he just has to be consistent," Jaguars defensive coordinator Todd Wash said of Brown Thursday. "It is a situation where it is a new position change for him. When he sees something, it's new for him.

"You see that each and every day he goes out; he is getting better. We are excited about the development of him and the guys behind him."

The offseason moves of Jack and Brown are defining the offseason for the Jaguars' linebackers, with Jack moving full-time to the middle role he played in nickel situations last season. Longtime veteran Paul Posluszny, who played middle linebacker in base situations last season before coming off the field for Jack in nickel packages, retired in March.

The Jaguars on paper appear strong at two linebacker positions, with Telvin Smith having made the Pro Bowl last season and Jack emerging as an impact player late in the season and postseason.

Less certain is Brown, who played 48 snaps in five defensive appearances last season with most of the snaps coming at weak-side linebacker.

"It was tough, moving from Will (weak-side) to Sam (strong-side)," said Brown, a fifth-round selection in the 2017 NFL Draft from Ohio University who registered 10 defensive tackles with three special teams tackles last season. "My keys are different. What I'm looking at is totally different. It's a big transition.

"I've played some Sam, but it's still new to me. I learned the base calls for that last year just to be in there, but this year I really have to get everything locked down and know what I'm doing out there on the field."

Brown was active the last 14 games of the season, playing defense in Week 3 against Baltimore and in a four-game, November-December stretch against Arizona, Indianapolis, Seattle and Houston. He forced a smile Friday when asked about his first play at the strong-side position last season.

"It was the London game, and they ran a boot," Brown said, referring to a 44-7 Jaguars Week 3 victory over the Baltimore Ravens at Wembley Stadium in London. "I remember, exactly: they ran a boot, I overran the tight end. I came back, but he stretched it out for a touchdown. That was my first snap.

"I learned being in that position you have to know your keys. You can't focus on one thing. You have to see a lot more than what I was looking at."

Brown said the biggest adjustments from the weak side to strong are being down on the line, and not having to attack the line, as opposed to starting the play off the line of scrimmage.

"I'm down there on the line," Brown said. "I don't have any seconds to maneuver around the offensive linemen and all that. I have to set the edge and be down there in the trenches."

Brown said he has depended heavily on Jack this offseason.

"He's here, and I'll ask him any kind of question that can come up," Brown said of Jack. "Whatever have a question about, Myles can answer it for me."

And while the process has been just that, Brown said he feels good about where that process stands as May turns into June – and as the task he will face in the fall grows closer.

"I had to get used to it the first couple of days, but I'm catching onto it now and I'm feeling a lot better about what I'm doing out there on the field," Brown said. "I'm still building my confidence, but I'm confident about what I'm doing and I know what I'm supposed to do."

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