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Jaguars News | Jacksonville Jaguars - jaguars.com

When is a weed a flower?

Join jaguars.com Senior Editor Vic Ketchman as he tackles the fans' tough questions.

Samuel from Orlando, FL:
"To get help from Orlando, the Jaguars need to involve Orlando. By that I mean they have to play games there. Orlando needs to feel a sense of proprietorship." You know, Vic, this is an awfully loaded comment to throw out there so nonchalantly. Is there a plan in place? Are you clearing the ground for something larger here (as you've been known to do)? Are moves being made? Or is this just your opinion? How about a proper column on this?

Vic: How about Kennedy? One gunmen or two? Wadda ya think? Hey, Samuel, this isn't a comment I threw out there. Wayne Weaver threw it out there last year at about this time, following that wonderful crowd for the home-opener against Arizona. Wayne held a press conference and he talked about the potential for playing games in Orlando, should the NFL go to an 18-game schedule.

Chris from Glen Lyon, PA:
If you set the Facebook feature to "friends only," then only the comments of your Facebook friends show up. It should eliminate, or at least vastly cut down on the number of responses in the box over there.

Vic: That's perfect, because I have no friends.

Stefano from Charleston, SC:
Tell the crybabies whining about the Facebook feed that all they have to do is shrink their browser window so it doesn't show the Facebook bar down the side.

Vic: There you go. All you need is a little shrinkage.

Jason from Long Beach, CA:
I guess there officially is no more quarterback controversy.

Vic: What about Zach Miller and the "wildcat?"

Justin from Lake Mary, FL:
That whole Jaguars and Orlando thing is a joke. We can't even get them on TV. According to my listings, we get to see the "Pokerstars Million Dollar Challenge" instead of the Jags game at four.

Vic: Start playing games down there and that'll change. That station manager will have aired his last "Pokerstars Million Dollar Challenge."

Scott from Eau Claire, WI:
Don't joke about a torn hibiscus because that's a bad thing. If you cut them, they'll grow back with beautiful flowers. If you tear them, they may never grow back. I don't blame Maurice Jones-Drew if his burst doesn't look the same.

Vic: I told him, if you cut it off, you'll grow a new one.

Ken from Miami, FL:
I've asked questions before and they have never been answered, and it's OK, but this one comes from frustration with the Jaguars. In the games against the Chargers, why didn't anybody ask Del Rio why Gates was so wide open that he caught the ball and ran it into the end zone before even being touched?

Vic: I asked, Ken, in the postgame press conference, but it's not a question coaches like to answer because in-depth answers require pointing the finger at someone and the answers can also divulge strategy. The simple answer is: Somebody blew the coverage. My information is that David Jones needed to squeeze inside on that play. That's a read he probably would've made had he been with this team longer. He probably also should've had help from a safety. Folks, I want you to consider something. The Jaguars have 10 defensive backs on their roster and only two of them, Rashean Mathis and Derek Cox, were drafted by the team. That's a unit in hard transition.

Josh from Pittsburgh, PA:
What line from "Christmas Vacation" best fits the Jaguars situation today?

Vic: The little lights aren't twinkling.

Stans from Jacksonville:
If we draft a quarterback next year, what is a realistic expectation for when he would start?

Vic: I don't think mini-camp is realistic, but certainly he should be the starter by the end of OTAs or the team should start thinking about finding another quarterback.

Don from Ponte Vedra Beach, FL:
New Orleans is a very good team to emulate. They were on the brink of no return. Drew Brees could have gone someplace else but he chose New Orleans. Then they had a plan and they stuck to it. That organization faced more hardships than any team in football. How important was that team to that city?

Vic: Drew Brees was a weak-armed quarterback coming off shoulder surgery on his throwing arm. He had yet to throw a post-surgery pass when the Saints signed him in expensive free agency in 2006. The Saints took a huge risk. As I recall, nobody else wanted him, for the obvious reason that he was a weak-armed quarterback coming off shoulder surgery. Why did the Saints take the risk? Because they were at the point of desperation. Their market had been nearly wiped out by Katrina and it was now-or-never time in New Orleans. I give the Saints credit for getting it right, but there was a lot of luck involved, too. If the surgery hadn't been a success and Brees had become a bust, that franchise might not be in New Orleans today. I would not advocate doing what the Saints did. I would advocate drafting a young quarterback with a strong arm. The percentages greatly favor that approach.

Cory from Valencia, CA:
Cox was a third-round pick and should be evaluated as a player as a third-round pick. Gene Smith spent a second-round pick on him and the pick should be evaluated as a second-round pick.

Vic: Precisely. The General Manager is responsible for the cost of the acquisition. The player must be judged according to where he was selected.

Todd from St. Augustine, FL:
I just wanted to say thank you for your honest opinion on every subject that comes up on "Ask Vic." I especially will always remember your first comments this offseason about the negativity in this world and in Jax. About two weeks later, my father-in-law and I were discussing your post. He immediately told me a story about his neighbor, who passed away about a year ago from cancer, but the quote within the story is what did it for me. He said, "Todd, you see that (pointing to a plant). Now, is that a weed or is that a flower?" I looked at him and smiled. He said, "That's all life is about." So thank you for waking me up to living a fulfilling and positive life; taking good from every situation and living a positive life every day.

Vic: It's all what you make it, isn't it? Last spring, I noticed a rather handsome-looking plant of some sort growing out of the ground where we had buried our dog. It touched me because I immediately figured my wife had planted it there, so I weeded around it and delighted at its growth each week as I walked past while cutting the grass. It grew straight and tall; it was lovely. Then, one day, I happened to notice that it resembled some of the weeds I was spraying. It was, indeed, a weed, but not until I realized it was a weed. For the longest time, it was a beautiful flower that warmed my heart. Enjoy the game, everyone.

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