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Sharing must be mandated

Join jaguars.com senior editor Vic Ketchman as he tackles the fans' tough questions.

Howard from Homestead, FL:
I've never played a game of golf in my life. If I sign up for the "Ask Vic" tournament, will you show me which end of the club to hold?

Vic: I couldn't do this to three other guys; put with them someone who has never played golf. A couple of years ago I was in a golf tournament and Micah Ross was assigned to my group. I don't think Micah had ever held a golf club until that day. The poor guy didn't want any part of this; he was just being a good guy and lending his celebrity presence to the event. I knew after one hole it was going to be a painful day. I even considered pulling a Rodney Dangerfield: "Oh, my arm!" We made it through before nightfall and I even have a picture to commemorate the event. Sign up for the cabana, Howard. I promise to be there this year.

Eric from Jacksonville:
I was wondering if you think Mark Brunell will do the same thing when he retires as Emmitt Smith did when he retired. Mark retiring as a Redskin is just injustice.

Vic: I don't agree. I don't need some dog and pony show to validate my memories, and retiring as a Jaguar won't erase the fact that Brunell spent time with the Redskins. It is what it is and I'll be comfortable with my recollection of how it was. Pro football is a tough game and I like it with an edge. Spare me the warm and fuzzy stuff. He was the Jaguars' quarterback. He was a great quarterback. He gave me seasons I'll never forget.

Duncan from London, England:
If you could choose an offense and a defense, which would they be?

Vic: I truly prefer the 3-4 for two major reasons: 1.) I like the variety and diversity of rushes and coverages it offers. 2.) It offers an opportunity to draft players from a bigger pool; tackles who are too short become nose tackles and big tackles who can't rush become ends and ends who can run but are too small become linebackers. Because there are so few teams that play the 3-4, those that play the 3-4 have less competition for the available talent. Offensively, there isn't a choice as distinct as the 4-3, 3-4 option on defense. I prefer an offensive system that emphasizes the power running game. If I could choose one offensive formation from football history, it would be the "Wing T." You could do it all out of the "Wing T;" the power running game, the inside trapping and counter games, the wide-open passing game. It offered finesse when you needed a little razzle-dazzle, but at all other times it was a punch in the nose.

Eric from Jacksonville:
I'm a season ticket holder for the Jags and want to see more bang for my buck. The Jaguars really need to pick up the slack and take it to the Colts this year. What do you think will be the biggest change about the Jags this year from last.

Vic: I think the biggest improvement will be on offense. Of course, that's where the greatest room for improvement exists, so that might not be much of a prediction, but I really like what I've seen this spring. Byron Leftwich is throwing the ball as I have never seen him throw it before.

Will from Brockport, NY:
I heard the Ravens are switching to a 46 defense. What exactly is that in terms of how many linemen and linebackers and could it be beneficial to the Jags to switch to it?

Vic: The "46 defense" is not numbered for any kind of particular alignment. It was simply named "46 defense" by Buddy Ryan as a tribute to a former player of his, Doug Plank, who wore number 46. In fact, if somebody asks, I'll tell a story about Plank and Ryan that portrays Ryan's affection for his hard-hitting safety. The "46 defense" is, very simply, a pressure tactic that "sends the house" to get the quarterback. The true trademark of the "46" is that it leaves its corners in dangerous press, man-to-man coverage. How do you beat the "46?" Throw it quick and throw it deep to the outside. Try to get a mismatch with a wide receiver on a corner and let your receiver go get the ball. All teams use a variation of the "46" from time to time. You might want to go back into the jaguars.com archives and read the "Defense 101" series, which details the various rushes and coverages teams use. Personally, I don't think the "46" would be a good fit for the Jags; at least not until they're sure about the guy they'll have at right corner.

Tonga from Inglewood, CA:
Who is the Jags player rep and who becomes the new player rep if the old one gets cut or traded?

Vic: Donovin Darius and Kyle Brady share the role as Jaguars player reps. Player reps are elected by their teammates.

Dan from Rochester, NY:
What's the best time a receiver has ever posted at the scouting combine?

Vic: It's difficult to give you an accurate answer because there are two kinds of times: ET (electronic time) and hand-held time. The ET is the official time; it's the one I use in my reporting. For example, everyone was reporting these wild times for Fabian Washington, but his ET at the combine was 4.33 and 4.37. The same goes for Matt Jones, whose ET was 4.40 and 4.44. The crazy thing is that teams tend to go by their hand-held times, which makes no sense to me because there's no way the hand-helds can be as accurate as the ET. Anyhow, the fastest time ever by a receiver might belong to Donte Stallworth, for whom the Jaguars had a 4.24 hand-held time, which is tied with Deion Sanders for the Jaguars' fastest all-time combine 40 time. I can't supply an all-time fastest ET because for a lot of years there was no electronic timing.

Brent from Palm Harbor, FL:
Who are your top five coaches of all-time?

Vic: Vince Lombardi. 2. Paul Brown. 3. Chuck Noll. 4. Bill Walsh. 5. Don Shula.

Bill from Ware, MA:
In regards to revenue-sharing coming to a head of the league's focus, everyone has their own opinion. If you were in such a position as to propose your own idea, what type of plan would you propose? One can only dream to have all this mess behind us so we may enjoy the game again without worries of the league falling apart.

Vic: Let me just give you two thoughts: 1.) In my opinion, there's only one plan that will provide for a level playing field and that's a system of complete revenue-sharing. Frankly, I don't think 34 percent will get the job done. I think a minimum of 50 percent of each team's current unshared revenue has to be pooled and divided evenly among the 32 teams. 2.) To discourage freeloading, a minimum contribution to the pool should be established; a kind of baseball "luxury" or "sin tax" in reverse. In other words, if a low-revenue team decides to cut its workforce and give a minor effort in driving revenue in its local market, then it will pay a penalty by contributing to the pool at a minimum contribution level. In my opinion, a hybrid between "sharing" and "keeping" will not work because the human greed factor will always cause owners to put more into the "keep" category than into the "share" category. Sharing must be mandated.

Robert from Las Vegas, NV:
Who are the top five most overrated players in the NFL today?

Vic: 1. Jevon Kearse. 2. Drew Bledsoe. 3. Randy Moss. 4. Ray Lewis. 5. Terrell Owens.

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